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Chapter 58: A Decade-Long Fan of Broken Blade, Uninvited
Chapter 58: A Decade-Long Fan of Broken Blade, Uninvited
This was the first time Luo Chen met Uncle Mi.
He was the old man Qin Liangchen often mentioned, the leader of the Broken Mountain Gang.
With his head of white hair and a round, ruddy face, he looked like a laughing Buddha, despite the wrinkles and his large belly. If he were in the mortal world, he would seem like a typical wealthy old man.
However, Luo Chen, along with all the scattered cultivators in the Dahe Market, knew that he was far from the simple, amiable figure he appeared to be.
It was common knowledge that the Foundation Establishment stage was the first major hurdle on the path of cultivation.
This realm was rich in resources and abundant in celestial energy, so logically, breaking through this stage should be relatively easy.
However, out of ten thousand cultivators, only one could successfully establish their foundation.
Only those affiliated with major sects found it relatively easier to reach this stage.
The reason for this lay in the fact that the method to refine Foundation Establishment Pills was tightly controlled by the major sects.
Even if a formula for the pill occasionally leaked out, the sects would go to any lengths to retrieve it.
If they couldn't get the formula, they would still take the person who had it, dead or alive.
Therefore, ordinary scattered cultivators who wished to establish their foundation could only hope for the few Foundation Establishment Pills that occasionally leaked from the major sects each year.
However, the appearance of each pill often brought about a storm of conflict.
At auctions, the price of a Foundation Establishment Pill could be astronomical.
Thus, despite the large number of scattered cultivators in the Dahe Market, the number of Foundation Establishment cultivators who emerged over the years was still very few.
In the past century, only two Foundation Establishment cultivators had appeared in the Dahe Market.
Uncle Mi was one of them.
After achieving Foundation Establishment, he became the leader of the Broken Mountain Gang.
He was a man of great character, kind to low-rank cultivators. He would generously help young cultivators who were struggling to make ends meet.
Even if some cultivators met a tragic end in the mountains, he would do his best to take care of their families.
Because of this, he gradually won the hearts of the people.
Under his leadership, the once impoverished and scattered cultivator alliance, which only sought resources in the mountains, gradually grew in strength.
Now, the Broken Mountain Gang was the largest force in the Dahe Market, second only to the six major sects.
The gang had over a hundred cultivators at the late Qi Condensation stage, over a thousand at the mid-stage, and countless low-rank cultivators who relied on them for work.
For instance, Luo Chen had benefited greatly from the Broken Mountain Gang when he was refining the Qi-Opening Pill.
Those who frequently entered the mountains had the highest demand for the Qi-Opening Pill.
Outside the Jade Cauldron Sword Pavilion, Uncle Mi led hundreds of people, gathered around a massive jade wall.
He paid no attention to the thousands of onlookers and pointed at the jade wall, saying loudly, "In this battle, I hope everyone will work together to defeat the opponent."
"The victors will have the spoils of war, and I, Uncle Mi, will take nothing for myself."
"Those who fall in battle can entrust their families to me. If they have descendants with spirit roots, I will do my utmost to cultivate them into cultivators."
"Additionally, if we win this battle, I will offer a Foundation Establishment Pill as a reward. Of course, there is only one, so it will go to whoever first reaches the peak of the ninth Qi Condensation stage."
"Once that person achieves Foundation Establishment, I will work with them to secure more Foundation Establishment Pills for the rest of you."
"Our Broken Mountain Gang seeks to break through the great mountain that blocks the path to immortality, achieving Foundation Establishment for all!"
Upon hearing these words, the hundreds of cultivators from the Broken Mountain Gang, who seemed to have known this beforehand, shouted in unison, "Victory is certain!"
The onlookers were stunned.
Uncle Mi actually had a Foundation Establishment Pill.
And he was willing to give it away as a reward.
What a generous gesture!
They also couldn't stop discussing the various promises Uncle Mi had made.
Luo Chen, witnessing this, couldn't help but admire Uncle Mi's grandeur. No wonder Brother Wang Yuan and Brother Qin recognized and followed him.
His gaze swept over the cultivators of the Broken Mountain Gang, who were all agitated and eager to fight.
Wang Yuan stood among them, his gaze cold.
Qin Liangchen and his wife, Murong Qianlian, were also there, standing tall and unafraid.
Hmm, Fellow Daoist Zeng was there too, standing close to the center of Uncle Mi's circle.
From the discussions of others, Zeng Wen was known as the "Sick Tiger" among the Seven Tigers of Broken Mountain.
Just as he was curious, the passage beside the jade wall emitted a rumbling sound.
Then, under the watchful eyes of the crowd, the massive door slowly opened.
A long, white passage opened up, and seven Foundation Establishment cultivators stood at the entrance, their expressions calm.
Another Foundation Establishment cultivator emerged from inside, none other than the familiar Chief Steward Miao Zhen of the Sword Pavilion.
He said a few polite words and then stepped aside to let the passage clear.
Without hesitation, Uncle Mi led nine late Qi Condensation cultivators into the passage.
The remaining members of the gang either used admission jade tokens or special iron badges, which were inspected before they were allowed to enter.
Seeing those iron badges, Luo Chen blinked. He seemed to have one too.
After all the members of the Broken Mountain Gang had entered, the other scattered cultivators approached the massive jade wall.
They didn't rush in, as everyone knew their participation in this grand opening ceremony was different from that of the Broken Mountain Gang.
"This is the list for the eighteen death matches. I've been waiting for days."
"Let me see who's fighting whom, so I can place my bets."
"With my fifty years of experience in the Dahe Market, I know most of the experts from both sides. The outcomes are clear!"
There were nine battle lists, numbered from one to nine, listed vertically.
Such a large-scale battle at the late Qi Condensation stage was rare, so everyone was highly interested.
Just as they gathered, someone let out a surprised cry.
"Who is this Min Longyu? Is he even part of the Great River Gang?"
"And Bai Qi? I've never heard of him."
"Yang Rusheng? I think I've heard that name somewhere. Wait, isn't he an independent cultivator from Heavenly Leaf Pavilion? When did he join the Great River Gang?"
"Shameless! The Great River Gang is actually bringing in outsiders for help."
"At least they're a local gang. Shouldn't this be considered cheating?"
Cheating?
Of course not!
The initial rules only restricted the cultivation realms of the participants, but never forbade either side from seeking outside help.
The Mountain Breakers chose to have their well-known experts participate, while the weaker Great River Gang somehow managed to recruit four outsiders.
A couple of them were occasionally mentioned, but the other two were completely unknown, even their origins were a mystery.
But despite the complaints, for the bettors, guessing the outcome of the battles was the most important thing.
"Regardless of where they come from, they're still limited to the Qi Refinement realm. So, it all comes down to their individual skills."
"Right, in that case, the order of the battles will be crucial if they want to win four out of five."
"The first battle is the opening match. Both sides will go all out. I want to see who they send out first."
"Han Dang, the leader of the Seven Tigers of Mountain Breakers, the Heart Devouring Tiger. Isn't this a sure win? I'm going all in!"
"Brother, you have some guts! But betting requires wisdom. Do you know what skills Min Longyu has?"
"Hehe, you know nothing. Who is Han Dang? He's at the peak of the Ninth Layer of Qi Refinement, ready to break through to the Foundation Establishment realm at any moment. Who knows where Min Longyu came from? He's no match for Han Dang. Wisdom? Going all in is wisdom!"
As the crowd continued to debate, Luo Chen used the Spirit Eye Technique to review the list of participants and the order of the battles.
The first, fifth, and final ninth battles were undoubtedly the most critical.
Neither side would dare to let these three matches slip away, and they would certainly send their strongest fighters.
Heart Devouring Tiger Han Dang against Min Longyu, Broken Blade Xu Renke against River Dragon Gao Tingyuan, and Fierce Blade Wang Yuan against Xiao Wuyan.
Seeing these three matchups, Luo Chen's eyes twitched.
He was familiar with most of the participants in the last two matches.
Brother Wang is that strong? Uncle Mi placed him as the final card.
Gao Tingyuan's participation was expected, but his luck seemed bad, facing Xu Renke.
The name Broken Blade was even more renowned than the leader of the Seven Tigers, the Heart Devouring Tiger. His combat prowess was unmatched among Qi Refinement cultivators.
If he dies on the Dao Discussion Platform, that would be great.
Decided, Luo Chen now considered himself a ten-year-old fan of Broken Blade Xu Renke and planned to support him enthusiastically.
Just as he was thinking, the gates of the Dao Discussion Platform began to sell tickets.
Some of the bettors, unable to wait, rushed into the entrance.
"Never mind that, we need to buy tickets fast!"
"Only ten thousand tickets are being sold. After deducting the free tickets for the two gangs' families, there aren't many left."
"Give me one. Here are a hundred spirit stones!"
Even after deducting the free tickets, there were still over nine thousand tickets left.
The Jade Peak Sword Pavilion, regardless of other matters, could earn nearly a million spirit stones just from ticket sales for this grand opening alone!
This didn't even include the various incomes from the trade fair, auction, and betting.
Luo Chen patiently wandered around, occasionally checking the betting stands and listening to the discussions about who would win or lose.
It felt like watching the World Cup in his past life, where fans compared the players of both teams, from defense to offense, from overall strategy to personal skills, and even their appearances and auras.
Hey, you can't deny, the atmosphere was great!
Time passed quickly, and the Great River Gang's hundreds of members arrived.
However, they didn't linger, merely glanced at the jade wall and then walked in.
Luo Chen paid special attention to the River Dragon Gao Tingyuan, who was being discussed.
He was a short and stocky man with a fierce aura.
He looked nothing like the poor man Gao Ting'e, whom he had killed, making it hard to believe they were brothers.
Gao Tingyuan's face was grim, probably because he had seen his opponent's name.
But he couldn't show any fear.
Being placed in the fifth position, a crucial spot, meant that the gang leader, Wang Haichao, highly recognized his strength and hoped he would win a match for the gang.
Could he afford to show weakness?
To this, Luo Chen could only think, "Good luck with that!"
As cultivators entered one by one, even some Foundation Establishment cultivators went in, the crowd outside remained large.
Over ten thousand people gathered in front of the jade wall, waiting for the grand opening of the Dao Discussion Platform.
The Jade Peak Sword Pavilion had announced that the jade wall was enchanted with the Water Mirror Technique, which would transmit the scenes inside.
It was said that to maintain the Water Mirror Technique, the Jade Peak Sword Pavilion had arranged for two Foundation Establishment cultivators to take turns casting it.
Of course, some people were deeply disappointed for not being able to buy a ticket.
After all, the Water Mirror Technique could only transmit images, not sounds.
But the program list revealed that there would be dance and music performances as well!
Amidst the loud and chaotic crowd, a voice suddenly rang out.
"My younger brother has an emergency at home. I'm selling a ticket. Highest bidder gets it!"
Thank you, Xiao Min, for the generous donation of 10,000 Qidian coins. Your support is greatly appreciated.
(End of Chapter)
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