Shui Qingshui, heir of the Marquis of Tianshui, demonstrated a set of the Eastern King Finger. His movements were ethereal and unpredictable, carrying a distinct air of eccentricity — he had actually cultivated it to a rather impressive level.
After watching, Princess Gouyu gave a slight nod and awarded him the evaluation of "Perfection of Grand Completion."
Compared to Yi Taichu, they felt the gap between them was simply too vast.
Princess Gouyu was also quite appreciative, directly awarding him an evaluation of "Initial Flawless."
This was the first heir of a marquis to receive a "Flawless" evaluation today.
One had to understand — when a martial technique was cultivated to the Perfection of Grand Completion, that was already extremely rare.
Reaching the Flawless realm meant there were essentially no loopholes or openings left. It had attained the level of being watertight.
Beyond that lay the realm of Perfection.
To cultivate a single martial technique to the realm of Perfection — that required nothing short of extraordinary genius. At the very least, in that particular technique, one's comprehension and natural talent had to be absolutely top-tier.
Yi Taichu's high evaluation made Bai Zhanyun, the heir of the White
"I'll demonstrate a set of the Eastern King Finger."
In the Purple Cloud Palm, Bai Zhanyun was roughly on the same level as Yan Yiming — at best "Perfection of Grand Completion," with no hope of reaching the Flawless realm.
But in the Eastern King Finger, he had immersed himself for many years and developed his own unique insights.
For all his arrogance, when Bai Zhanyun performed this set of the Eastern King Finger, it truly possessed its own distinct bearing. At times it was like a swallow darting through clouds, at others like a bird plunging into a forest. At every twist and turn, he produced surprising variations — it was truly a case of the path seeming lost only for willows to part and flowers to bloom again.
Under Bai Zhanyun's hands, this set of the Eastern King Finger earned the distinction of "eccentricity" and "variety." Though it had not yet reached the realm of Perfection, in terms of originality and extensibility, it more than deserved a "Flawless" evaluation.
Sure enough, after a moment's contemplation, Princess Gouyu awarded him an evaluation of "Peak Flawless."
Seeing that his evaluation of "Peak Flawless" clearly surpassed Yi Taichu's, Bai Zhanyun swelled with pride. His chest puffed up involuntarily, and when he stole a glance toward
Standing on the platform, Bai Zhanyun was brimming with confidence, as though today's demonstrations had already made him the champion of the arena. He swept his gaze around imperiously. "Is there anyone else who wishes to come up and demonstrate?"
Seeing Hong Tiantong give up, Bai Zhanyun grew even more insolent, letting out a hearty laugh. His gaze suddenly settled on
"Jiang Chen, if I recall correctly, you said I was very fortunate just now. Presumably, you've cultivated both of these techniques to an extraordinary level?"
Bai Zhanyun was thoroughly pleased with himself. He had long taken a dislike to this Jiang Chen. To humiliate him thoroughly — especially on an occasion like this — would be absolutely delightful.
Moreover, Bai Zhanyun had caught wind of the Longteng Marquis's covetous eye toward the half-spirit-vein land belonging to the Marquis of Jianghan. So, suppressing Jiang Chen on this stage might just earn him extra favor from Miss Juxue.
Bai Zhanyun calling Jiang Chen out by name once again made him the center of everyone's attention.
Earlier, Jiang Chen had inexplicably defeated Yan Yiming, and the whole thing happened so quickly that most people couldn't even tell what had happened. They all figured it had been a fluke.
Jiang Chen counted the provocations — this was the fourth time Bai Zhanyun had thrown down the gauntlet. He spat a chicken bone from his mouth back onto the table and sighed helplessly. "Why is this world so full of idiots? You've already had your moment in the spotlight, you're currently ranked first — why go and slap your own face?"
"Slap my own face?" Bai Zhanyun laughed boisterously. "Jiang Chen, if you can slap my face, I, Bai Zhanyun, will stand right here and let you do it."
Jiang Chen rose slowly to his feet, saying nothing more. He cast a brief glance toward Princess Gouyu with a faint smile, then walked toward the platform.
"Bai Zhanyun, you received the evaluation of 'Peak Flawless' and outshone everyone else. You must be feeling quite proud of yourself, yes? At the peak of your life, stomping on some poor wretch for good measure — the icing on the cake, isn't it? That way, the fair lady is sure to look upon you with new eyes, right? I have to say — you're quite naive, and quite the failure."
"Naive? Failure?" Bai Zhanyun snorted through his nose. "You — a second-rate wastrel who couldn't even pass three basic assessments. A good-for-nothing in the initial True Qi Realm with three meridians. You dare call me a failure?"
"It's not me saying you're a failure. You truly are one. You look upon the fair lady as a phoenix of the ninth heaven, while she regards you as nothing more than a stray cat or dog. You keep putting on airs in front of me without even understanding what you're putting on airs for. A man who doesn't even know the purpose of his own existence, wasting his best years chasing a fantasy that will never come true — you still dare say you're not a failure?"
"Your set of the Eastern King Finger won a round of applause and earned you the Peak Flawless evaluation. Do you really think that technique of yours is truly flawless, with no openings whatsoever?"
"Since you're so smug and believe your Eastern King Finger to be impeccable, I'll give you a chance. Use it on me with everything you've got. I'll show you what truly impeccable means!"
Jiang Chen's words rolled forth like spring thunder, crashing and reverberating without end. In that moment, the momentum was like dark clouds bearing down on a city on the verge of collapse.
In the wake of his speech, almost without anyone noticing, the atmosphere in the hall had quietly shifted in a subtle way. Even the onlookers felt a flicker of something stir within them.
"Jiang Chen? You're challenging me? You're sure you want to smash an egg against a rock?" Bai Zhanyun was utterly unconcerned, a savage grin spreading across his face.
"Cut the crap. Show me that Eastern King Finger you're so proud of. Let me see how much weight the so-called heirs of the Four Great Marquises actually carry!"
One was, in the public eye, a universally acknowledged waste of space — a cultivator at the initial True Qi Realm with a mere three meridians of True Qi.
The other was one of the kingdom's recognized heirs of the Four Great Marquises — a cultivator at the advanced True Qi Realm with eight meridians of True Qi.
These two should not have existed on the same level. Under normal circumstances, an eight-meridian powerhouse wouldn't even bother bullying a three-meridian junior — the gap was simply too vast.
And yet, the one issuing the challenge was the three-meridian initial-stage True Qi cultivator.
"Has Jiang Chen lost his mind from that beating with the rod?"