Sword Among Us

Hero’s Mountain Villa was an extraordinary world!

Arenas of various sizes could be seen everywhere, and there were players and famous martial artists on them. The people from all sorts of sects and wandering martial artists from Beggar’s Sect, Tang Sect, and bodyguard agencies would either stand below or gather in the restaurants nearby to give comments.

Happy and his group watched everything that they could see while they were on their way.

They arrived near an arena close by under Great Swordsman Gui’s lead.

“Hero’s Mountain Villa is divided into four regions, and those big arenas outside the fort are prepared for you new stars in the world of martial artists. All of you young disciples must fight against the disciples from other righteous sects in the world of martial arts. Those who can win three challenges can enter the Street of Arenas.”

Great Swordsman Gui stopped and pointed at a street where people moved about not too far away. “It’s very easy to clear the major arena. There are no losing conditions. As long as you can win three continuous rounds, you will earn the right to compete. If you can’t, you can switch to another arena at another fort gate.”

Happy said nothing, but he quietly remembered all that Great Swordsman Gui said.

‘The big arena outside should be a warmup spot for all player challengers.’

“If we don’t have any losing conditions, does it mean that we can challenge the other players again at any moment?” Nangong Ying asked from the group.

“That’s right.” Great Swordsman Gui nodded. “Hero’s Mountain Villa has always been a place for righteous martial artists to spar against each other and get to know each other. As long as you are willing to, you can go over there to register your names and choose an arena to spar against other martial artists.”

Happy and his group looked in the direction of his gaze and saw that there was a table at the foot of the arena. A man with a goatee who had the look of a shopkeeper sat there with a pen to register the players’ names. Every time a fight ended on the arena, he would shout the next name loudly.

Great Swordsman Gui paused for a moment before he shifted his gaze to the street across from him. “Street of Arenas is slightly different. That place is a spot for us to increase our ranks. The elites from all over the world are gathered over there. Those elites have a certain level of strength!

“All those who can enter the Street of Arenas must win thrice outside, but once you enter the Street of Arenas, you must win two rounds on each arena. You must win against the person currently on the arena, and win against the next challenger before you can go to the second arena. There are four Streets of Arenas in the fort, and each street has five stages!

“Those who get through the five stages can enter the Dragon Tiger Arena, which is at the center, and they can fight against the elites who are already famous in the world of martial artists! That place will hold the true martial arts tournament, and the elites from each sect will be gathered there. You will definitely not be disappointed.

“But each time you lose, you have to wait an hour before you can register your name again, and you have to start all over at the arena outside.”

Great Swordsman Gui explained things very clearly.

“I won’t explain to you in detail about these. There is someone in charge of each arena, and they will explain things to you there if necessary.”

Once he finished speaking, he excused himself and left Huang Rong and the others to return to the fort gate to continue with his work to defend the fort.

At that moment, aside from the six from the Murong Clan and Nangong Ying, Purpose of Unrequited Love Valley, Young Zi of Mantuo Villa, and Lu Jing of Peach Blossom Island had already eagerly gone to register their names and challenge the arena.

The man with the goatee who had been calling out the names respectfully wrote their names at the end of the list.

“I give up.”

The two people who were fighting on the arena seemed to be NPCs. When they saw that someone had arrived to fight, the person who showed signs of being the weaker one readily admitted defeat. He tapped against the ground and gently leapt out of the arena, wrapped his fist in his palm, and left. “Complete Reality Sword Technique is indeed extraordinary.”

“You were the one who allowed me to win.”

The person who won the match was a disciple from Complete Reality School. When he heard his opponent, he put away his sword and stood tall while he swept his gaze at the area under the arena. “Is there anyone else who is willing to come up here to fight against me?”

His voice was neither humble nor arrogant, and it made him appear elegant.

“Next challenger, Purpose of Unrequited Love Valley.”

“I am Purpose, my title in the world of martial artists is Love and Emotions Ending Swordsman. I ask that you grant me your guidance, sir!”

Purpose did not expect that it would be his turn so soon, but he soon got himself into the mood and jumped on the arena lightly.

He observed his opponent for a while, but the abilities of the disciple from Complete Reality School did not seem to be much. They were very normal.

However, when his opponent returned the gesture and reported his name, Purpose was shocked.

“I am Yin Zhiping of Complete Reality School. I ask that you grant me your guidance!”

Happy and the others who were gathered at the foot of the arena were also shocked. They all sucked in a sharp breath! They could not help but size up the rather elegant Daoist with fair skin. If they ignored the fact about his temperament, he was a person who had nearly become the sect leader of Complete Reality School.

No one had expected that they would run into such an elite on a normal arena.

Purpose instantly became nervous on the stage.

But it was as expected of Hero’s Mountain Villa, a place where mighty fighters gathered. NPCs were mainstream, and if they, a group of Life and Death Realm players wanted to fight their way up with ease, it would only show their conceit!

Sword light flashed. Yin Zhiping moved like a layer of drifting gray clouds and flew up from the arena!

His sword was like a freezing star, and it was cold as well as sharp. It drifted about, making Purpose unable to tell Yin Zhiping’s precise attack trajectory. The first attack alone already showed that his strength right then was at least twice as strong as in the previous fight.

Happy observed it in detail. He could tell at first glance that Yin Zhipin was using Preacher’s Swordplay from Complete Reality School. It was one among the seven sword techniques of Complete Reality School. It was very profound, and it could be considered as a supreme-grade martial art in Life and Death Realm.

Yin Zhiping had great comprehension. Even though he had not reached the peak with the technique, he could already bring out quite a lot of its essence, and the drifting style of the sword technique as well as the changes were brought out in full display.

When Happy saw this, he understood Yin Zhiping’s strength. His damage was not very high, but his skills were at an ingenious level.

Purpose would have a hard time winning, and his heart sank when he realized that. Disciples from various sects had come for the tournament, and the people who joined Hero’s Mountain Villa could not be underestimated.

And just as Happy expected, after a few moves, Purpose was suppressed by Yin Zhiping’s ingenious sword technique. His expression became increasingly more solemn, and the contempt that was previously on his face disappeared without a trace. He was caught up in a difficult battle.

If his first fight was already so difficult, his subsequent fights might be even more difficult!

The group’s expressions at the foot of the stage were also not very pleasant. They suddenly felt that they were very insignificant.

The great disparity caused many people to feel a little worried.

But Happy soon recovered.

The players were not going to be fighting against NPCs in the martial arts tournament, but against other players. Hence, there should be a distinct categorization between the strong and weak.

Besides, there would definitely be a few who would get through the big arena and the Street of Arenas to stand on Dragon Tiger Arena in the end to fight against the true elites in the world of martial artists.

If everyone had the chance to get on Dragon Tiger Arena, the tournament would become a joke.

There was a high likeliness that the martial arts tournament was organized for the purpose of letting the players understand the difference between them and real martial artists. There was something that separated them aside from qi realm…

Such as their understanding toward their martial arts.

Once Happy calmed down, he walked toward the place for registration.

At that moment, a few men and women with dejected expressions but who did not bother to hide their awe-inspiring presences suddenly squeezed their way through the crowd. They were talking about the situation at the Street of Arenas among them.

“I ran into an elder from Beggar’s Sect at the third level, and he even had eight bags on him[1]. There was no way I could fight against him, so I think it’d be better if we changed spots and tried our luck elsewhere.”

As they spoke, they did not even spare a glance at Happy and his group. They just left into the distance.