Chapter 120: Ten Fourth-Grade Talents

“Old Lin, the Shi family won’t be so afraid of the seniors that they dare not send anyone out anymore, right?”

In the waiting area for families on the left side, Mao Xiaomao, sitting beside Lin Tuotian, couldn’t help but ask.

“No,” Lin Tuotian said in a deep voice. “If the Shi family wants to continue surviving in Qinghe City—no, if they want to continue existing in Yu Kingdom, they must send people to fight! They have to complete one hundred duels!”

“Why is that?” Mao Xiaomao scratched his head. “Honestly, I don’t really understand this family martial combat system. Normally, if you lose a few or even a dozen matches, you’d cut your losses and give up on the competition. Why insist to the very end and just die for nothing?”

“Yeah, I don’t quite get it either,” Xiao Chengyue chimed in. “Last night, I looked up information related to martial duels, and found that once a duel is approved, it must continue until completion; it won’t end until one hundred fights are done! That’s the rule, but it seems a bit too harsh. What if, halfway through, the two families decide to give up and reconcile?”

“Reconcile?” Lin Tuotian smiled faintly. “Once a duel begins, there’s only one way out—complete all one hundred fights, and in each fight, one person must fall. There’s no other choice!”

“Why?” Mao Xiaomao widened his eyes.

Shen Qian, Zhang Jun, and others also turned their heads, listening intently.

“Why?” Lin Tuotian murmured at first, then sighed deeply. “Because that’s what other forces, especially the royal families of various countries, want.”

“Although the royal families no longer hold real power, only titles remain, the cabinets are the same.”

“What do you think is most important to the royal family and the cabinet?”

“Stability!” Shen Qian said seriously. “For the cabinet, the stability of the nation is above all else.”

“Exactly, stability,” Lin Tuotian said in a low voice. “For the royal family and cabinet, nothing is more important than national stability. But we martial artists are the most restless—they constantly expose incidents of casualties. Today you kill me, tomorrow I kill you. Kill after kill, no matter who wins, the ones who suffer in the end are always the common people.”

“I understand now!” Mao Xiaomao’s eyes lit up as he analyzed, “Because martial artists threaten social order, the royal family and cabinet most want to see deadly fights between them escalate into formal duels. If two martial families destroy each other, that’s beneficial for social stability.”

“On the contrary, if two martial families kill each other recklessly without restraint, it would only bring chaos to the city and panic to the people!”

“Yes.”

Lin Tuotian glanced at Mao Xiaomao and sighed. “Under the principle that ‘stability is above all else,’ once a duel is applied for, it must be completed. If it’s not completed or if either party backs out halfway, the two families will not only be despised by everyone but also secretly suppressed by the royal family. With the royal family’s backing, other sects and families will be willing to step in and launch attacks.”

“Although the royal family no longer drives matters, and the cabinet is far away in the capital city, unable to oversee local affairs, the city guardians and martial offices in each region still secretly push others to besiege the dueling families. The spoils are then divided among the attacking forces.”

“If a duel continues until the end, at most seventy family members die. But if someone backs out halfway, the entire family might be wiped out!”

“Moreover, if handled well, maybe not even seven need to die,” Lin Tuotian said, clenching his fists tightly.

Mao Xiaomao didn’t notice and curiously asked, “Ah, not even seven have to die? Could it be that one family member is as powerful as the senior and wipes out the entire arena?”

“Yes!” Lin Tuotian gritted his teeth. “Thirty years ago, the Shi family dealt with my Lin family just like that! That old bastard Shi Zhinie hired ten external fourth-rank experts to participate in the duel! Half of those ten fourth-rank experts killed Lin family’s fourth-rank fighters! Then the other half slaughtered everyone else behind them!”

Lin Tuotian trembled all over, eyes blazing with fury, hands clenched so tightly his nails dug into his flesh without him noticing.

The wild murderous intent radiating from him made Mao Xiaomao stick out his tongue in fear, not daring to speak further.

Shen Qian, Jiang Tianhao, Xiao Chengyue, and others were also silent.

Ten fourth-rank experts!

Thirty years ago, the Shi family externally hired ten fourth-rank fighters to duel with the Lin family.

No wonder the Lin family vanished overnight.

Ten fourth-rank fighters entered the arena from the start.

One-on-one, they could wipe out ten Lin family fourth-rank masters.

But did the Lin family have ten fourth-rank fighters?

No!

So once those fourth-rank masters were killed or seriously wounded, the fate of the rest was sealed.

Just like now.

Facing Su Jingxing, unless the Shi family continues sending out fourth-rank fighters, anyone else going up will die immediately.

How many fourth-rank fighters does the Shi family have left?

Will they keep sending fourth-rank fighters?

“The next match: Shi family, Helian Xuezhen. Lin family, Mie Shi Ren.”

Li Linzhou’s voice rang out.

Amid the uproar, Lin Tuotian suddenly stood up, eyes shooting out a fierce killing intent, fixating on a silver-haired old man floating down into the arena, his voice escaping through clenched teeth.

“It’s him! It’s him! That old bastard is still with the Shi family!”

“...Old Lin, you know him?” Xiao Chengyue shrank his neck and whispered.

“Of course I know him! Even if he turned to ashes, I’d know him!” Lin Tuotian snarled, teeth gritting. “Helian Xuezhen, that old Helian rag! Thirty years ago, he was one of the ten fourth-rank experts Shi Zhinie hired, the dog traitor who killed my father!”

“Ah?”

Mao Xiaomao, Shen Qian, Xiao Chengyue, Zhang Jun, Jiang Tianhao, and the others were all stunned.

The next moment, Shen Qian realized and panicked, nervously asking, “A fourth-rank? Helian Xuezhen was already a fourth-rank thirty years ago? What level is he now? Third-rank?”

“Impossible,” Jiang Tianhao shook his head. “If he were third-rank, why would he still serve as an attendant and remain with the Shi family? He would have gone to the capital city or abroad long ago!”

“Right, we shouldn’t scare ourselves,” Xiao Chengyue swallowed and encouraged, “We have to believe the senior. If he was fourth-rank thirty years ago and still not third-rank now, then our senior can definitely defeat him!”

“Yes, absolutely can defeat him!”

“Definitely can defeat him!”

“...”

Others nearby nodded in agreement, though concern lingered on their faces.

Being fourth-rank thirty years ago and not yet third-rank now still meant immense power.

The Shi family not only kept sending experts into the arena but also dispatched such a formidable figure.

Can Su Jingxing, facing a fourth-rank expert with decades of cultivation, win?

The Mie Shi Alliance, Lin Tuotian, the Li family, Zhou family, Qi family, Wang family, and all who recognized Helian Xuezhen were filled with anxiety and anticipation.

On the arena.

“Friend, it’s not too late to regret now.”