Chapter 114 : Chapter 114

Chapter 114. You Think Three Martial Kings Are Enough to Win? Once Sleep God Falls Asleep, You Are Finished [Two Chapters Combined]

Three minutes passed in the blink of an eye.

Wearing Yanhuang Team uniforms, the Yanhuang Team returned from the preparation area to the arena.

The spectators below could not help jeering.

“I thought they were holding back some ultimate move, but they do not look any different from before.”

“What do you know? Yanhuang Team is the reigning champion, after all. If they are about to lose to a newly formed team, calling a timeout to save a little face is understandable. Hah.”

“I actually think something is off. Look, when the Yanhuang Team left the arena just now, their eyes were full of panic and fear. But now they are overflowing with confidence, like they are absolutely certain they can win.”

“That does seem true. Could the Yanhuang Team really still have some kind of trump card?”

“…”

Very quickly, everyone noticed the difference in Yanhuang Team’s demeanor before and after the timeout, and their imaginations began to run wild.

Once the Yanhuang Team had taken their places on the battle platform again, the host spoke. “Yanhuang Team, are you ready?”

Jiang Feng looked up, a strange killing intent in his eyes, and gave the host a firm nod.

“Then the match resumes!” the host announced in a thunderous voice.

On the arena floor, Lei Zhen activated Three Thousand Thunder Movement, and the battle platform was instantly wreathed in the power of lightning.

“Jiang Feng, is there any point in continuing this fight?” His voice was slightly cold as the pressure of a Martial King swept across the entire field.

The five members of Yanhuang Team all revealed a cold smile.

“Lei Zhen, do you think you are the only one who can reach the Martial King Realm in the middle of a match?”

Jiang Feng slowly raised his hand, and his magician’s attire appeared once more. “Spark Team, prepare yourselves to witness an absurd performance.”

The moment he finished speaking, all five members of Yanhuang Team activated the Blood-Burning Secret Art at the same time, and the Blood Qi within their bodies began to boil wildly.

The sky was suddenly wrapped in white clouds, and goose-feather snow began to fall slowly.

Wooden vines abruptly coiled across the battle platform, while towering trees sprang up one after another, turning the arena into a field of verdant green.

And even more absurdly, Jiang Feng, wearing his magician’s hat, stepped through the air itself as playing cards scattered from the heavens, as though he were completing some kind of ritual performance.

The pupils of Spark Team contracted sharply. As they watched Yanhuang Team’s auras rise with astonishing speed and condense into talent domains that only Martial Kings should possess, their hearts sank in alarm.

“This is bad. They are becoming Martial Kings as well!” Lei Zhen frowned.

Tang Long’s face twisted into an exaggerated, cartoonish expression of shock. “What? Does that work too? Are Martial Kings supposed to be this common now?”

“No!” Chu Xingchen shook his head. A streak of purple-black rose into his eyes as he saw through the essence of the situation.

“They are not truly breaking through to the Martial King Realm. They only possess Martial King-level power temporarily. They must be cultivating some kind of special cultivation art.”

“Huh? Then is that not cheating?” Tang Long asked in confusion.

Su Linyu shook her head. “The rules of the competition do not restrict cultivation arts. And this sort of cultivation art, which raises one’s strength for a short time, causes immense damage to a warrior’s future potential.”

“No warrior is normally willing to destroy his own martial path by cultivating something like this, so the rules never specifically forbade it.”

“My God! The Yanhuang Team is betting their entire martial path just to win this!” Tang Long could not help blurting out.

The audience below was equally stunned.

“To borrow the power of heaven and earth and form one’s own talent domain—that is an ability only Martial Kings possess!”

“What is going on? They called a timeout, came back, and now three peak Sixth Realm members of Yanhuang Team are also becoming Martial Kings on the spot? That makes no sense!”

“More than that. Even the other two members now have auras pressing close to the peak of the Sixth Realm. Has the Yanhuang Team been hiding its true strength all along?”

“No, that is not right. Those three only have the power of Martial Kings. They are not truly borrowing the power of heaven and earth for their own use the way Lei Zhen is. They must be cultivating some kind of cultivation art that boosts strength.”

“What?! Is the Yanhuang Team trying to cut off their own martial path? That kind of cultivation art is practically a Forbidden Art. Once cultivated, their realm will never advance another step in the future.”

“…”

Faced with Yanhuang Team’s willingness to gamble away their martial path for the sake of victory, the league chairman on the high platform was flushed red with anger.

“What is wrong with this year’s league? Every last one of them is exploiting loopholes in the rules.”

“Xiao Wang, once the finals are over, form a new rules committee immediately and completely revise the regulations of the Huaxia Team League.”

“Yes, Chairman.”

In the VIP section, the people from the major families were not shocked. Their expressions were only grave.

Almost all at once, they turned to look at Zhou Mingyuan, who was seated in the front row.

The spectators might not recognize the Blood-Burning Secret Art, but they certainly did.

What made it especially thought-provoking was this: if this was clearly the team of Jiang Feng, the young master of the Jiang family, then why were they cultivating a forbidden art of the Zhou family?

“Jiang Dongnian.” Chief Clan Elder Jiang Qisheng of the Jiang family rose to his feet and said with a frown, “Why does Yanhuang Team know a forbidden art of the Zhou family? You had better explain yourself properly.”

He allowed Jiang Feng to compete for the position of heir, but he could not tolerate colluding with another family just to fight over that position.

The moment he said this, everyone’s gaze fell on Jiang Dongnian.

The latter felt a hint of panic in his heart.

But Zhou Mingyuan stood up before he could speak and said with a smile, “It was merely a business transaction. He paid to purchase a forbidden art of my Zhou family, and I was willing to sell it. What is the problem?”

Jiang Qisheng frowned tightly, his gaze sharp as a needle. “Dongnian, is that so?”

Jiang Dongnian could only nod stiffly, though he knew very well that the Chief Clan Elder would never truly believe it.

But word had already spread that the champion of the league would become the heir of the Jiang family. As long as Feng’er won, the end result would be the same.

Jiang Qisheng, his hair white as snow, gave a cold snort and slowly sat back down.

With all the great families present, this family matter could not be allowed to become a public disgrace.

Shen Qingyue, for her part, understood perfectly well what was going on. If Jiang Dongnian had not been her husband’s own younger brother, she would already have taught him a harsh lesson.

She drew in a deep breath and looked down toward the arena with worry in her eyes.

The Zhou family’s Blood-Burning Secret Art did more than exhaust a warrior’s future potential. It also drove the user into a frenzy of boiling Blood Qi, making every move a killing move.

Xiao Chen… make Sleep God step in now.

At that moment, on the arena floor, Spark Team was once again forced into a passive position as Yanhuang Team’s strength suddenly soared.

Jiang Feng and Leng Zhenghan joined forces to besiege Lei Zhen. They both knew that the Martial King power granted by the Blood-Burning Secret Art was nowhere near a true Martial King’s power.

Right now, only by fighting two against one could they suppress Lei Zhen.

“Turn Ice and Snow into Blades—go!”

Clad in frost armor, Leng Zhenghan manipulated the snow filling the sky and turned it into blade after blade, all shooting toward Lei Zhen.

Lei Zhen roared, and the power of lightning swept out in all directions, shattering the countless ice blades into fragments.

But immediately after that, the playing cards came flying in as sharp as knives.

Unable to chain his movements together quickly enough, Lei Zhen could only keep using Three Thousand Thunder Movement to evade the dense rain of cards.

Leng Zhenghan gave him no time to breathe at all. He drove his frost spear into the ground, and a surge of Frost Soul Power swept over the battle platform.

Lei Zhen instantly felt both legs stiffen, his speed greatly reduced. One playing card grazed his face, leaving a clear streak of blood slowly trailing downward.

Without hesitation, he raised his mechanical arm, unleashed lightning power, and smashed a punch into the ground.

The terrifying lightning shattered the frost domain and temporarily interrupted the seamless joint assault of Jiang Feng and Leng Zhenghan.

Lei Zhen drew in great gulps of air. Faced with two opponents whose strength was roughly on par with his own, he could clearly feel the strain.

As for the captain and the others…

Out of the corner of his eye, he looked back toward his teammates.

There, Tang Long’s confident defense had been smashed apart with a single punch by the musclebound Lu Shen, whose strength had suddenly skyrocketed.

“My God! Why did you suddenly become so fierce?” Tang Long spat out a mouthful of blood as he flew backward to the edge of the battle platform.

Lu Shen clenched his fist. “Little fatty, who told you to provoke me? This is what happens.”

The moment he finished speaking, his fist came crashing forward again.

But just before it landed, it suddenly stopped, and delight appeared on his face. “Little fatty, were you praising me just now?”

“Hah! So you noticed I am a real tough guy!” Lu Shen proudly began showing off his bulging muscles in front of Tang Long.

“…”

Tang Long clutched his stomach, feeling wretched inside.

The gap in their realms had already been large to begin with, and now that Lu Shen’s power had surged again, even Primordial Vajra Barrier could no longer withstand him.

Tang Long’s hands trembled as he summoned golden light to cover his entire body, then looked toward Chu Xingchen, who had likewise fallen into a bitter struggle nearby.

Facing Zhang Wei, the shadow assassin whose power had surged just as much, Chu Xingchen already had several wounds on his body.

Chu Xingchen pushed Demonic Eyes to its limit, but even so, he could only barely keep track of Zhang Wei’s movements.

“Rise, Myriad Swords!”

He had no other choice. Sword qi condensed into countless transparent blades, which spun at extreme speed around his body.

Only then did it stop Zhang Wei, the shadow assassin, from closing in.

Chu Xingchen drove his sword into the ground and panted heavily, his face slightly pale as he looked at the wounds carved across his body by the dagger.

He slowly raised his head. Thinking of how the captain was facing Zhou Yue, who now possessed Martial King-level strength, he quickly looked over.

But to his surprise, even with the power of a Martial King, Zhou Yue still could not withstand Su Linyu’s Radiant Flame under the natural suppression of their elements.

She could only keep her distance and rely on ranged attacks to wear her down.

“What kind of monster are you? How can your flames still annihilate my attacks like this?!”

In her Blood-Burning state, Zhou Yue was beginning to lose control of herself. She now possessed Martial King-level power, yet she still could not inflict any real damage on Su Linyu.

That was because those flames were even burning away her comprehension of the wood element itself. Every one of her attacks lost its effect the moment it encountered the Radiant Flame.

Even if fire naturally countered wood, how could it possibly cross two major realms and still fight like this?

It was not only Zhou Yue who was shocked. Su Linyu herself could hardly believe how powerful the Radiant Flame was.

With only Fifth Realm strength, suppressing a Martial King with a wood-element talent was apparently no problem at all.

The cultivation art Brother Yichen had given her was simply far too powerful!

On the arena floor, Su Linyu had become the one fighting with the greatest ease.

But even that was still not enough to reverse the fact that the Spark Team had fallen behind.

The spectators below shook their heads regretfully.

“To be honest, I despise the Yanhuang Team for this kind of behavior, but the rules are what they are. Alas.”

“Yes. The Spark Team truly fought its way into the finals on genuine strength. There is no questioning that. It is just a pity they are still going to lose.”

“Look at them. Even though they are losing, they still show no intention of surrendering. That is what team spirit truly is!”

“No matter the final outcome, Spark Team is already the champion in my heart! Spark Team, go!”

“That is right! Spark Team, go!”

“…”

In an instant, waves of sound erupted throughout the entire arena. Spark Team’s flags were raised and waved as the crowd roared their support for the team on the stage.

All five members of Spark Team froze for a moment.

Listening to the cheers from below, they felt something stir in their hearts.

Even in the face of defeat, there were still people supporting the Spark Team.

It was as though they had finally found the meaning of standing in this arena.

Su Linyu turned and looked at Sleep God, who was standing at the rear. “Sleep God, it is time!”

Sleep God snapped out of his daze from the audience’s cheers and looked at the captain standing atop the flaming Vermilion Bird.

His hand trembled slightly, and fear flickered in his eyes.

Even without his mind being disturbed by It, he still did not know whether he could control that power.

What if he lost control and killed someone by accident… What then?

But everyone is waiting for me now. I cannot hesitate any longer.

He could not betray the trust of his teammates, nor could he betray the kindness the Boss had once shown him.

Sleep God gave a relieved smile, slowly closed his eyes, and gently fell to the ground.

That sight made the audience’s cheers stop dead.

“My God, what is wrong with that pretty boy? It would already be bad enough if he did not contribute and only held the team back, but how did Yanhuang Team frighten him into fainting?”

“Spark Team is going to lose, and honestly, it really is that pretty boy’s fault. He has done absolutely nothing the entire match. I truly do not know what Young Master Jiang was thinking, keeping him on the Spark Team.”

“Exactly. If it were me, I would have kicked him out long ago. He has Sixth Realm strength and still refuses to put in any effort. I am starting to suspect the Yanhuang Team paid him to act.”

“…”

Not understanding what had really happened, the audience immediately shifted the blame for Spark Team’s impending defeat onto Sleep God, who had not exerted himself even once.

In the VIP section, the members of the great families also shook their heads slightly at Spark Team’s performance.

Only Shen Qingyue, Tang Wuji, and Chu Ningfeng slowly lifted the corners of their mouths, as though they were suddenly extremely interested in what would happen next.

That immediately gave Zhou Mingyuan a bad feeling. His gaze fell on Sleep God’s unconscious body on the arena floor.

He was puzzled. Why would a man who had supposedly fainted from fear make him uneasy?

And why did Shen Qingyue and the others look so confident?

Zhou Mingyuan slowly furrowed his brow.

Beside him, Jiang Dongnian was all smiles, so excited he could hardly sit still.

The league championship was Feng’er’s now. The future heir of the Jiang family.

His plan had finally succeeded. Wonderful. Wonderful!

At that moment, Jiang Feng in the spectator stands also smiled faintly and cast Jiang Yichen a sidelong glance. “Man, concede. You no longer have any chance of turning this around.”

He leaned closer and reached out, intending to hook a finger under Jiang Yichen’s chin.

Jiang Yichen avoided him in disgust and looked at him as though he were an idiot. “If you are sick, then get yourself treated. Do not try that revolting nonsense with me, or I might just beat you up.”

“Heh. Man, are you playing hard to get?”

Jiang Feng withdrew his hand with a smile, then said in an icy tone, “I have said it before. Whatever catches my eye, I always get.”

“Idiot.” Jiang Yichen laughed. “The real show is only just beginning.”

His gaze settled on Sleep God, who had already fallen asleep.

Hm?

A look of confusion appeared on Jiang Feng’s face. Following Jiang Yichen’s line of sight, he looked toward Sleep God’s unconscious form on the stage.

At once, a contemptuous smile curled across his lips. “Man, I know who this person is. He used to be a member of the Phoenix Team, did he not?”

“I heard Huang Lu mention him before. She said he becomes stronger when he falls asleep. But how strong could he possibly become?”

“Yanhuang Team now has three Martial King-level fighters. Do not tell me he can instantly wipe out the Yanhuang Team by himself?”

“Man, you really do make me laugh. From this moment on, I shall be the heir of the Jiang family—”

Hm?

Jiang Feng was just about to continue mocking him when, in the instant he turned his head back, he suddenly discovered that Sleep God, who had supposedly fainted from fright, had vanished.

???

The audience below was also full of question marks.

“Little brats… shut up.”

A hollow, ethereal voice rang out across the sky above the arena, as though it had drifted in from a dream.

Then Sleep God slowly stepped out from the void. Countless white strands drifted around him, dreamlike and unreal, as though he himself were the very embodiment of illusion.

“Captain, you have all worked hard. Leave the rest to me.”

With the support of the Dream-Entering Stone, Sleep God looked at the members of Spark Team and spoke slowly.

In an instant, the entire arena fell into dead silence.

In the VIP section, the members of the great families all revealed shocked expressions.

Those white strands… they were the power of Laws!