Chapter 366 Dragon Warrior Tournament (Part-3)
The same type of explosion was seen once again. However, this time, it wasn't just the platform that was destroyed. The opponent who blasted away and crashed onto the ground had severe third-degree burns, and by the time the proctor reached him, Hao Shuren lost his life.
Unlike Meng Tao, Mark struck him directly with the intention to kill. The 5-circle realm Spirit Warrior at the elementary stage didn't think of using an energy barrier to protect himself and only thought of trying to locate his opponent.
As a result, when he was struck by the warhead, his body couldn't defend itself against the damage inflicted upon him and ended up dying.
"No…" "No…""
Two screams echoed simultaneously from the participants' section and an old man entered the field to pick up the dead body.
"The winner is Lu Zhen of the Kunlun sect."
The Proctor announced the winner after sensing that Mark was still on the battle platform.
After it was announced, Mark calmly walked to the edge and jumped down onto the ground before returning to his seat to watch the rest of the matches. He wanted to see if there were any other potential Spirit Warriors who can be recruited.
Not many winners of round 128 had left the arena like Meng Tao. After finishing their matches, they returned to their seats to observe their future opponents in order to formulate a strategy for the win.
So, there was quite a crowd in the participants' section as Mark returned and every one of them paid attention to him because he was the only one who killed his opponent so far in the current round. And that too, with the same weapon Meng Tao used in his match.
If one person used it, then, it can be considered a strange type of artifact. But, if another person also used an identical-looking artifact, then, it can be considered a mass-produced product.
Hence, they were curious about the weapon.
Because Mark was sitting alone now as Zi Ling and Dai Qiu were accompanying Dong Fang at the normal audience section, someone gathered courage and approached him while the proctor was dispersing the smoke and repairing the platform.
"Excuse me. Are you Owner Lu from Phoenix Empire?" A rough voice was heard from the side, gaining the attention of nearby participants.
A couple of participants started whispering among themselves.
"Phoenix Empire? Wasn't he from the Kunlun sect?"
"Earlier, that guy named Meng Tao is from Phoenix Empire. That's why this fellow probably misunderstood it?"
"Why did he address him as Owner Lu, then? Only the store owners, restaurant owners, and landlords were addressed that way."
"Who knows…"
Meanwhile, some participants who belonged to the sects of the Phoenix Empire fell into thoughts, realizing something they should have done long ago. They couldn't help but stare in the direction of Mark.
As for Mark, he calmly turned his head to look to the left to find a tall and thin young man with a ponytail.
After inspecting his details, Mark nodded and replied with a comment, "I didn't expect my name will reach even the Heavens sect. But then again, your sect is an ally to the imperial family. I guess it shouldn't be a surprise."
The guy didn't know how to respond to Mark's unusual comment as he wasn't sure whether the latter was commenting in a sarcastic way or speaking casually.
In the end, he ignored Mark's comment and said in a polite tone, "Indeed, it is Owner Lu. I'm sorry but I was just surprised to see you here. I heard that you are already at the peak stage of Exalt realm."
"Exalt realm?" "Exalt realm?" "Hmm?" "What is he saying?" "Did this fellow break the rules somehow and enter the competition?" "How did he evade the senses of a legendary realm expert?" "Did he use some mystical artifact?"
The whispers circulated all over the place as soon as Ye Kang blurted out those words.
Mark furrowed his brows and responded sharply this time, "Just because I can kill the Cerberus doesn't mean that I'm in Exalt realm, Mr. Ye. Don't speak of bullshit if you weren't aware of actual facts. "
Ye Kang was startled at first but then as he realized what his words signify, he quickly apologized for his mistake and ran away from there, leaving the listeners filled with curiousness.
And no one knows who started to spread the rumors, probably the participants from the Phoenix Empire or some elder from the Xianshu sect; Mark's deeds mixed with a few lies spread around like wildfire.
"Killing a 7-circle realm beast king?" "Killing legendary realm experts on his wedding (engagement) day?" "Earning tens of millions of gold coins in an auction?" "Forcefully snatching the daughter of his enemy?" "Obtaining the fire seed?" "The one behind the deaths of the Ironpalm sect's elders?" "Destroying the major noble clans over a simple feud?" "Best friend of the second prince?" "Abducting a noble clan's heir for money?" "Was in cahoots with a mysterious organization from another world that tries to take over this world using firearms?"
An ample of rumors spread among the disciples of the sect and participants alike by the end of the day.
No one knows the authenticity of the news and everyone is afraid of asking him because of Lan Ju and the manticore.
However, most of the participants did have one question in their minds.
Did they have the ability to defeat him in battle?
The five-circle and four-circle realm warriors weren't confident. Only the 6-circle realm experts wanted to battle him. Of them, there were a few who were even dying to face him, although mostly because of the rumors.
Evening at around 8 o'clock, Scarlet Peak;
Outside of the lodging area, several sect disciples and participants gathered around a bonfire, separated into small groups, and were having discussions, majorly about the tournament, beauties, their respective kingdom affairs, etc...
Sui Weisheng was one of the people who was discussing the tournament. And the people in his group couldn't stop talking about Mark of all the people, making the former quite uncomfortable.
"Senior, I can't believe you fought him and escaped alive. I mean he is someone who had killed a legendary realm expert, right?" A young man exclaimed in surprise after listening to Sui Weisheng's exaggerated story of how he valiantly fought against Mark and his attack helicopter.
Not intending to listen to any praise for Mark, Sui Weisheng replied, "It's just a rumor, junior brother Qi. Lu Zhen wasn't strong as the rumors suggested. He only knows to depend on those weird puppets and weapons. Even in today's match, he depended on that weapon. Take them away from him and he is nothing worth discussing."
"But, still, that weapon is scary. In one move, it killed a 5-circle realm Spirit Warrior." The 4-circle mage shuddered, imagining himself in such a scenario.
In response, Sui Weisheng let out a snort, "it's not a big deal. I have already gauged its power. It cannot harm an opponent who is in 6-circle and Lu Zhen himself isn't immune to its damage if the explosion occurs around him. So, as long as we keep a close distance, the weapon is useless."
"Yeah, senior is almost at the Exalt realm. If he meets Lu Zhen in battle, that guy will not have a good ending…" Another young man commented, supporting Sui Weisheng.
Sui Weisheng pleasantly smiled on the surface. However, he had different thoughts in his mind. He was actually praying that he won't meet the guy in the field. The Sui clan is not doing great right now.
So, if they meet in the arena and he fails to control his temper and kills him, then, the Sui clan will face repercussions. After all, in his opinion, Mark was no longer the same weapon seller they met, months ago.
Now, Mark had the backing of the second prince, the fifth princess, to some extent, even the Emperor. Adding on top of that, a Supreme Being was serving him.
So, now, it is really not the best time to take his revenge. And as the next clan head, Sui Weisheng wanted to help his clan and not send it to its doom.
"Man… who could have expected that Lu Zhen would crash into this tournament of all the places…" He inwardly sighed and stared at the stars.
Meanwhile, at White Peak;
While the rest of the participants indulged themselves in some form of entertainment, the fifteen-year-old Xie Mei was practicing her archery in darkness.
A target in the form of a human was more than 200 meters away and there were only fire lamps placed around it for visibility. 𝘧𝓇𝗲e𝑤𝑒𝙗noѵ𝒆𝚕. 𝒄o𝓶
And yet, every arrow struck the target in whatever places she aimed.
After striking it with the 30th arrow in a row, the image of a person came to her mind and she mumbled under her breath, "There's something off about that fellow named Lu Zhen. For some reason, I couldn't just keep him away from my head."