"Brother Hu, this little child, his thighs are not even as thick as my arms, isn't he just asking for trouble?"

 

"Could it be that he's brought here by some big shot?"

 

"Kid, this isn't the place for you, go find your mother quickly."

 

The group of burly men surrounding the bearded man teased Xu Taiping.

 

Although some of these men were not tall, they were all strong and muscular, clearly following the path of martial cultivation.

 

In contrast, Xu Taiping, while not short, appeared much leaner in stature, with a slightly delicate face that made him look even more youthful.

 

"Senior Brothers, please make way."

 

Xu Taiping ignored the ridicule and simply gestured for them to move aside.

 

"Kid, are you really here to participate in the competition?"

 

The bearded man, surrounded by the group, rubbed his bald head and looked curiously at the sign in Xu Taiping's hand.

 

"Yes."

 

Xu Taiping nodded and then walked directly past them, heading quickly towards the notice board.

 

"Interesting, interesting. I want to see who this little kid will be fighting in the next round."

 

The bearded man, known as Brother Hu, chuckled and followed Xu Taiping to the notice board.

 

"I want to see too, see who's lucky enough to encounter this little kid."

 

The others joined in and followed.

 

"The opponent for the twenty-seventh round seems to be…"

 

Before Xu Taiping could find it himself, the group took the initiative to find it for him.

 

"It's the Xuan level arena, number twenty-three!"

 

Someone finally found the sign indicating Xu Taiping's opponent.

 

"Number twenty-three? Isn't that Brother Hu?"

 

The crowd erupted into a commotion.

 

Xu Taiping also looked curiously at the bald, bearded man.

 

"Damn, it really is me!"

 

Brother Hu looked at the sign in his hand and burst into laughter upon discovering that it was indeed number twenty-three.

 

Xu Taiping didn't react much to this.

 

He had come to the notice board to confirm where the next round of the competition would take place and the sign of his opponent. He wasn't particularly concerned about who the opponent was, as he had been preparing for this competition for three years.

 

"Kid, are you scared?"

 

Seeing Xu Taiping silent, the crowd started teasing him again.

 

"Kid, with your skinny arms and legs, I'm afraid you won't even be able to withstand one of my kicks. I advise you to surrender early and save face."

 

Brother Hu looked at Xu Taiping with a smile.

 

It was clear that after discovering that Xu Taiping was his first opponent, he felt much more relaxed.

 

"See you on the arena."

 

Xu Taiping said to Brother Hu seriously.

 

Brother Hu was first stunned, then laughed again, pointing to Xu Taiping who was already walking towards the arena, "Did you hear that? The kid said see you on the arena!"

 

"Let's go, we're also at the Xuan level arena, let's go take a look together."

 

"Brother Hu, don't go easy on him, otherwise we won't have a good show to watch."

 

The group of people laughed and followed Brother Hu to the Xuan level arena.

 

…

 

Next to the Xuan level arena.

 

"Xu Taiping from the Green Bamboo Residence, Sun Hu from the Red Rock Manor, you two wait, the next match will be yours."

 

After taking the signs from Xu Taiping and Sun Hu, the examiner from the West Wind Pavilion made a mark in the book and then asked the two to wait on the side.

 

Because there were many participants in the competition, and they were mostly unknown cultivators, there were not many people watching by the side of the arenas, most of them were cultivators waiting to participate in the competition.

 

"Kid, fists and feet have no eyes, if you don't surrender now and end up getting hurt, don't blame me."

 

Brother Hu laughed at Xu Taiping again.

 

Xu Taiping ignored him and instead looked seriously at the arena.

 

At this moment, a competition was taking place on the arena, between an old man with white hair and a middle-aged man holding a strange knife.

 

"It's actually Elder Qin and Master Zhao."

 

"Both of them are competing for the qualification to enter the Dragon Gate. It's a pity that they encountered each other in the first round."

 

Sun Hu and his brothers were originally planning to tease Xu Taiping, but after seeing the two on the arena, their attention was immediately drawn to them.

 

"Clang!"

 

At that moment, Master Zhao, after some probing, finally gripped the knife handle with both hands and struck at Elder Qin with great momentum.

 

Facing Master Zhao's fierce strike, Elder Qin calmly tapped the ground with the tip of his foot and then gracefully retreated.

 

"Bang!"

 

Master Zhao's long knife directly struck the granite ground, sparking a shower of sparks.

 

"Swish!"

 

Despite the failed strike, Master Zhao was not discouraged. He simply turned the blade and once again struck at Elder Qin.

 

The transition of this strike was very smooth, and the speed was even faster than before. It seemed impossible for Elder Qin to avoid it so easily.

 

"Smack!"Unexpected to all, just as Elder Qin was about to be bisected by the blade, his body suddenly floated up like a feather, his tiptoes landing precisely on the edge of Zhao Zhuangzhu's long saber.

 

However, the moment his tiptoes touched the blade, his body seemed to suddenly gain a thousand pounds, crushing Zhao Zhuangzhu's saber to the ground with a loud "bang."

 

With his saber pinned down, Zhao Zhuangzhu didn't give up but instead abandoned his weapon for his fists, throwing a punch accompanied by a tiger's roar, viciously aiming for the old man's face.

 

To Xu Taiping's surprise, the elder didn't dodge the ferocious punch but instead closed in, first using his forearm to lift Zhao Zhuangzhu's wrist upwards, then wrapping his palm around Zhao Zhuangzhu's forearm, pulling back with the force of the punch. As Zhao Zhuangzhu lost his balance, the elder tensed his body and rammed his shoulder heavily into Zhao Zhuangzhu's chest.

 

"Bang!"

 

With a thunderous noise, Zhao Zhuangzhu's body flew backward like a cannonball, landing outside the ring.

 

"Good!"

 

Seeing this, including Sun Hu and the other men, couldn't help but cheer in unison.

 

"It looks like Elder Qin will definitely make it into the Dragon Gate Gathering this time."

 

"As long as he doesn't encounter someone from the Gazing Abyss Realm or a master of spells, he might even have a chance at the Seventh Peak!"

 

"The last two times were all Outer Disciples; there aren't that many from the Gazing Abyss Realm or those skilled in spells."

 

The crowd burst into a flurry of discussion.

 

"What a peculiar martial technique, it seems light and floating, but when exerted, it can be as heavy as a thousand jun, sending someone flying so far."

 

Xu Taiping also murmured in amazement.

 

"Child, this is called 'Converting Force.' Elder Qin has practiced it for at least fifty years; by now, he's quite the expert. Anyone who faces him is unlucky!"

 

Sun Hu chuckled.

 

"It's just a little bit of the basics."

 

The Fairy Lingyue, who had been sleeping in the gourd, suddenly spoke in a languid voice.

 

"Lingyue sister, you know about Converting Force?"

 

Xu Taiping communicated with Fairy Lingyue through soul transmission, curious.

 

"It's a technique of using minimal force to move a heavy weight, a skill of deflecting and exerting force. But this old man has only learned the basics; otherwise, dealing with a swordsman wouldn't be so troublesome."

 

Fairy Lingyue yawned.

 

"If you encounter him, just remember my words: in the world of martial arts, speed is unbeatable."

 

She then added meaningfully to Xu Taiping.

 

"Speed is unbeatable…"

 

Xu Taiping pondered deeply.

 

"Green Bamboo Residence's Xu Taiping, Chiyang Manor's Sun Hu, quickly ascend the stage for the match!"

 

At that moment, the examiner beside the ring called out the names of Xu Taiping and Sun Hu.