With the Red Flame Fruit, I'm confident that in the remaining three days, my cultivation can break through to the peak of the Rigid-Soft Realm. This way, my power will increase another level, and I'll certainly shine in the Challenge King contest. At least a top-three finish is almost guaranteed.
The goal of this trip to the Red Chain Mountain Range had been achieved, and Luo Feng prepared to return.
Half a day later, Luo Feng, carrying a large beast-skin bundle, appeared in Qingfeng Town.
「Medicine Ding Store.」
Luo Feng placed the beast-skin bag packed with Demon Beast materials on the counter.
"Shopkeeper, I'm selling Demon Beast materials."
"It's you?" The shopkeeper raised his head from behind the counter, looking at Luo Feng with a hint of surprise in his profound gaze.
"Late-stage Rigid-Soft Realm... Your cultivation is advancing so fast!"
Luo Feng had once bought two Tiger Power Tyrant Body Pills from this Medicine Ding Store in one go, so the shopkeeper still had some impression of him. He remembered Luo Feng's cultivation was previously only at the mid-stage of the three-layered Strong Body Realm of the Meridian Wheel. In just over half a month, he had advanced to the mid-stage of the four-layered Rigid-Soft Realm. This rate of cultivation was something he had rarely seen in his life.
"This is all thanks to your store's Tiger Power Tyrant Body Pill," Luo Feng chuckled and made an offhand comment.
Is the effect of the Tiger Power Tyrant Body Pill really that good...?
The shopkeeper muttered to himself, full of doubt. He clearly didn't believe Luo Feng's words, but upon hearing Luo Feng praise his store's pills, a smile appeared on his face. He opened the beast-skin package and began personally inspecting the Demon Beast materials inside.
"Level-one Demon Beast flower silver snake materials, fifty silver taels; level-one Demon Beast Bare-tailed Wolf materials, eighty-five silver taels; level-two mid-rank Demon Beast Green-eyed Demon Wolf materials, three hundred and forty silver taels... In total, 3,320 silver taels."
3,320 silver taels...
Hearing the total announced by the shopkeeper, Luo Feng smiled bitterly. I spent several days in the Red Chain Mountain Range, fighting desperately and killing dozens of Demon Beasts without rest, only to earn enough for a few Condensation Yuan Pills. It's not even enough for a single better-quality pill.
Nevertheless, Luo Feng was quite satisfied.
After all, his monthly allowance was less than two hundred silver taels. In the past, to buy Lin XiaoXiao a Condensation Yuan Pill, he had scrimped and saved for three months just to gather enough silver taels.
This sum of over 3,000 silver taels was an absolute fortune to his former self.
After the shopkeeper settled the account, Luo Feng collected the silver note and left the Medicine Ding Store.
After leaving the Medicine Ding Store, Luo Feng didn't return directly to the academy. He planned to get something to eat before heading back.
Turning a corner, Luo Feng familiarly made his way to the Drunk Fairy Building.
The Drunk Fairy Building was the best restaurant in Qingfeng Town. The last time Luo Feng and Bing Ruolan had visited, they found the signature dishes here quite good. Plus, martial artists often gathered here, allowing one to overhear many interesting stories from the rtiad, so they frequented the place.
Finding a seat by the window, Luo Feng listened to the discussions of the surrounding martial artists.
The atmosphere in the Drunk Fairy Building today was somewhat different from usual. With the academy's Challenge King contest approaching, everyone was discussing the event, which was to be held in three days.
"I heard that to compete with the other three major academies, this year's Purple Sun School Challenge King contest is unlike any before. The rewards for the top ten Challenge Kings are very generous."
"I've heard the same. The first-place winner can even get a superb martial art and a tier-two spiritual medicine, the Nurturing Spirit Pill! Impressive! A superb martial art can greatly increase the chance of breaking through to the Meridian Wheel Realm. There's bound to be fierce competition this time. I just wonder who will finally get their hands on this superb martial art."
"Last year's Challenge King contest winner was Duanmu Yu. Now that Duanmu Yu has entered the inner courtyard, the top ten Challenge King positions in the outer courtyard will likely see a big change. Who among the Purple Sun School's current outer courtyard disciples do you think is qualified to win first place?"
"Isn't it obvious? Li Heshan from the Golden Sun class was only slightly inferior to Duanmu Yu in last year's Challenge King Contest. He's already reached the late stage of the Iron Bone Realm, and his Light Martial Art, Duckweed Step, has also been cultivated to Great Accomplishment. The top Challenge King this year must be him!"
A nearby youth, wearing the uniform of a Purple Sun School inner courtyard student, shook his head. "It's still hard to say. Li Heshan's strength is indeed formidable, but among the top three talents from the Golden Sun class, there are also Li Tianyang and Qin Luoxue. The strength of these two cannot be underestimated. Especially Li Tianyang—his father is an instructor in the Golden Sun class. It's inevitable that he'd give his son special treatment, so Li Tianyang definitely has some powerful martial arts up his sleeve."
Many surrounding martial artists nodded in agreement, though some also expressed displeasure.
Suddenly, a middle-aged martial artist lamented, "In last year's Challenge King contest, Bing Ruolan from the Silver Moon class narrowly missed placing in the top ten and earning the title of Challenge King by a whisker. I wonder how she'll do this year."
"I'm afraid the result will be the same," someone nearby analyzed. "Silver Moon class students have always been of average talent, and the academy's resource allocation for them is far inferior to that of the Golden Sun class. Now that a year has passed, the power gap between her and those geniuses from the Golden Sun class has surely widened. Forget the top ten; she'll likely struggle to even make the top twenty now."
Luo Feng shook his head as he listened. I know Bing Ruolan's strength very well. Her cultivation is now solidly at the initial stage of the five-layered Iron Bone Realm, and her Tiger Roar Fist has also reached the Small Success stage. Though entering the top three might be challenging, securing a spot in the top six should be no problem for her at all.
Luo Feng didn't want to argue. Everything would be clear at the Challenge King contest in three days.
The dishes and wine were served. Luo Feng stopped listening to the surrounding conversations, planning to finish his meal and then return to the academy.
CLAP!
During the meal, a sudden loud sound of a table being slapped echoed through the restaurant's main hall. It was extremely loud, and everyone turned to look in the direction of the noise.
The sound was somewhat familiar to Luo Feng. He looked up, and his expression couldn't help but change slightly.
So that rascal Li Yuan actually managed to ask Zhao Qin out…
In a corner of the hall, two figures stood beside a table. The slightly chubby youth in front was Luo Feng's friend, Li Yuan.
Behind Li Yuan stood a petite girl in a pale blue dress, exuding a serene and gentle aura.
This gentle-looking girl was Zhao Qin, also a student of the Silver Moon class, and her strength was about average within the class.
Li Yuan had been smitten with Zhao Qin for a long time. He had told Luo Feng several times that he wanted to ask her out but had always lacked the courage. Luo Feng had even teased him about it. Now, it seemed he had finally succeeded.
Luo Feng had initially wanted to go over, greet Li Yuan, and tease him a bit, but he quickly realized something was wrong.
Zhao Qin stood behind Li Yuan, her bright eyes filled with nervousness and even a hint of fear. Meanwhile, Li Yuan's face was extremely grim as he glared, his eyes practically spitting fire, at a nearby table.
Two students from the Golden Sun class were seated at that table.
"Li Yuan, we're all students of the Purple Sun School. Why didn't you greet us when you saw us? Are you looking down on us?" a Golden Sun class student with small eyes said, squinting at Li Yuan. His tone was icy, and as he spoke, his beady eyes kept darting towards Zhao Qin, who stood behind Li Yuan.
Li Yuan's face flushed red as he stared at the two youths before him. He had gone to great trouble to ask Zhao Qin out, intending to have a meal with her at the Drunk Fairy Building. He hadn't expected these two Golden Sun class students to suddenly block their way and spew such nasty words.
Knowing he was no match for the two of them, Li Yuan gritted his teeth. He suppressed the rage in his heart and turned to Zhao Qin behind him, saying, "Qin'er, let's go somewhere else."
"Mhm." Zhao Qin didn't want to stay there any longer either, so she nodded. Just as the two were about to leave, a figure suddenly flashed before them.
"Li Yuan, since you're already here, why leave in such a hurry?"
The small-eyed youth reached out to block them, his hand nearly brushing against Zhao Qin. This caused Zhao Qin to cry out in alarm and quickly hide behind Li Yuan.
"Yang Cheng, what do you think you're doing?" Li Yuan roared, pulling Zhao Qin protectively behind him.
"Heh, we just wanted to invite Miss Zhao for a drink. You should feel honored that two geniuses from our Golden Sun class are asking you to accompany us for drinks. Or perhaps, like that trash Luo Feng, you don't know how to appreciate goodwill?" Yang Cheng's eyes suddenly turned cold, and a chilling aura emanated from him.
Li Yuan paused, apparently trying to understand the connection between Yang Cheng's statements.
"Heh, Yang Cheng, don't scare them," the short-haired youth sitting at the table said with a faint smile. He looked at Li Yuan and spoke in an arrogant tone, "Li Yuan, let me be frank. Luo Feng doesn't respect Young Lord Duanmu, and now he has offended Li Tianyang. His good days are numbered. I heard you're Luo Feng's good friend, so I'll offer you a way out. As long as you swear to cut all ties with Luo Feng from now on and follow Young Lord Duanmu, I guarantee your life will be much more comfortable than it is now. And girls like this one... you can have your way with them as you please..."
The short-haired youth gestured towards Zhao Qin with a lewd smile on his face.
"Shameless!" Zhao Qin trembled with anger.
Li Yuan's slightly chubby face flushed red. He clenched his fists and glared furiously at the short-haired youth, demanding, "Take back what you just said!"
"What a joke! Words spoken are like spilled water—impossible to take back. I said what I said. What can you do about it?" the short-haired youth taunted, looking provocatively at Li Yuan.
"I'll fight you to the death! Splashing Wave Palm!"
With a furious roar, Li Yuan's aura suddenly erupted. He lunged at the short-haired youth like a raging tiger, his palm striking out, accompanied by the faint sound of surging waves.
"Such ignorance!"
A dangerous glint flashed in the short-haired youth's eyes. He slapped the table and sprang up, throwing a punch at Li Yuan.
BOOM!
As fist and palm connected, the shockwave sent several nearby tables flying, and diners scrambled to dodge. Li Yuan's cultivation had just broken through to the third level of the Strong Body Realm, while the short-haired youth was already an expert at the mid-stage of the fourth level of the Rigid-Soft Realm. Upon impact, Li Yuan was instantly sent flying backward, coughing up a mouthful of blood. He crashed through several tables and continued to fly, on the verge of being thrown out into the street, when suddenly someone caught him, halting his momentum.
"Brother Feng!" Li Yuan wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. When he turned to look, his eyes lit up with delighted surprise.
The one who had stopped Li Yuan was indeed Luo Feng.
"You slacked off on your usual cultivation, and now you're paying the price, huh?" Luo Feng said sarcastically, then had Li Yuan sit down beside him.
A hint of shame appeared on Li Yuan's face. He clenched his fists and said agitatedly, "They dared to insult Brother Feng and Qin'er! I didn't care about anything else! So what if I got beaten up!"
"Li Yuan, this is a Blood-Red Pill. Take it quickly," Zhao Qin anxiously took out a crimson pill and handed it to Li Yuan, her eyes filled with worry.
Li Yuan nodded obediently. His docile appearance now was a far cry from the reckless fury he had shown just moments before.
"You two stay here."
Luo Feng gazed forward, traces of killing intent already burning in his eyes.