Volume Two: Travels in the State of Qi, Chapter 138: Battle Against Wu Ba

Nowadays, all the duels are between peerless geniuses, naturally making them spectacular. Every spectator is unwilling to miss a single match.

Furthermore, that kid Zhang Heng has always liked to show off, and every time, he manages to pull it off. These people really wanted to see if Zhang Heng, a remarkably arrogant third-stage Qi Sea Realm cultivator, could create another miracle against Wu Ba, a true genius at the eighth-stage Yuan Dan Realm.

"Kid, tell me the secret of that treasure staff," Wu Ba said coldly the moment Zhang Heng appeared.

Seeing this, Zhang Heng was a bit confused. Could it be that this foolish boy still didn't understand what had happened?

Then, Wu Ba took the broken wooden stick he had snatched from Zhang Heng at the Treasure Appraisal Pavilion the other day out of his spatial ring. With the stick in hand, Wu Ba's aura became fierce. He pointed at Zhang Heng and said viciously, "Kid, tell me the secret of this treasure staff, and I might leave your corpse intact."

Zhang Heng could no longer control himself. He burst into laughter on the stage.

"A genius? I think you're a natural-born idiot! You actually mistook a broken wooden stick for a treasure and haven't realized it even after all this time."

"What are you laughing at?" Zhang Heng's behavior made Wu Ba extremely displeased.

The others were also confused for a moment. What exactly was this kid Zhang Heng doing? Could he be using some legendary sonic technique?

After a long while, Zhang Heng finally stopped. He looked around, then deliberately infused his voice with spiritual power and shouted loudly, "Our young master of the Heavenly Feather Villa, the genius Wu Ba, spent six spirit essences to buy an ordinary broken wooden stick and has been treating it as a treasure ever since. It's truly hilarious!"

Then, Zhang Heng pointed at Wu Ba. "Everyone, please look, the great genius Wu is still holding that stick right now."

"What?" Most of the people off-stage didn't believe it; how could anyone spend six spirit essences on a broken wooden stick? But when they saw the stick in Wu Ba's hand, they suddenly believed Zhang Heng.

They all wanted to burst into laughter uncontrollably, but seeing the livid expression on the face of the Master of Heavenly Feather Villa, they forced it back.

The Master of Heavenly Feather Villa was named Wu Fa Wutian. He was a truly ruthless man who, with his fifth-stage Heaven Origin Realm strength, could forcibly battle experts at the sixth-stage Heaven Origin Realm. These people could not afford to provoke him.

Wu Ba finally realized he had been played by Zhang Heng. Seeing everyone looking at him, he became extremely furious. He hurriedly stowed the wooden stick into his spatial ring, then gave Zhang Heng a sinister smile. "Kid! Very good. Very good. Later, should I beat you to death, or should I beat you until you're crippled?"

Zhang Heng was noncommittal about his words. "I think I'd better beat you to death. With an IQ as low as yours, living in this world is just a waste of air."

The two were at daggers drawn, and the battle was on the verge of breaking out.

Just then, Wu Hong announced from the second floor, "The first round of the Imperial City Tournament begins now."

As soon as these words were spoken, Wu Ba immediately lunged at Zhang Heng with his fists, unwilling to wait a second longer. Zhang Heng dodged using the Small Aurora Phantom movement technique.

At this moment, battles on the other stages had also begun.

Various geniuses unleashed their techniques, fully displaying their brilliance on the stage.

Wu Ba's figure appeared where Zhang Heng had just been standing, only to find that Zhang Heng had already slipped away. His reactions were lightning-fast; in an instant, he re-gathered his spiritual energy and attacked Zhang Heng again, using both fists and feet in rapid succession, not giving Zhang Heng a moment to react.

His speed was high, and Zhang Heng had to push the Small Aurora Phantom technique to its limit to cope.

After a dozen exchanges, seeing he couldn't hit Zhang Heng, Wu Ba stopped. He folded his arms across his chest and stared at Zhang Heng from afar. "Kid, I admit you've got some tricks. But running away won't help you."

At this point, Wu Ba lifted his foot and stomped heavily on the ground, instantly triggering waves of air.

"Silly boy, even if you can't hit me, you don't have to harm yourself," Zhang Heng mocked.

But before Zhang Heng could react, a formless force appeared around him.

Following that, Wu Ba flew toward him. Zhang Heng tried to dodge, only to find that the gravity around him had seemingly increased; his body felt extremely heavy, and his speed was restricted.

*As expected of someone from a major sect. They do have some tricks.*

"Kid, can't run anymore, can you? Just obediently accept your death," Wu Ba laughed triumphantly and attacked Zhang Heng.

"You want to trade blows with me so badly? Then I'll fulfill your wish," Zhang Heng said with a light snort. He could have pushed his movement technique to the absolute limit and evaded, but there was no need.

"Take my 'Pretty Pretty Fist'!" Zhang Heng shouted, immediately covering his fists in spiritual energy. A dozen phantom fists materialized around his hands. Instead of retreating, Zhang Heng charged forward to meet Wu Ba.

Wu Ba also let out a roar: "Tyrant Body Fist!" As he spoke, his fist visibly grew a size larger.

The two fists collided violently. Massive amounts of spiritual energy instantly engulfed them. A moment later, the energy exploded, and both were knocked back.

At this moment, Zhang Heng only felt a burning pain in his fists. Why was it that every time he went head-to-head with someone, he was the one who got hurt?

Wu Ba only took two steps back, while he had retreated ten.

After steadying himself, Wu Ba laughed wantonly. "Kid, your fists are too soft. I wonder if your bones will be a bit harder."

"You'll know once you try," Zhang Heng said with a cold face. Since he couldn't trade blows directly, he would stick to his old tactics.

After the competition began, all sixteen stages were embroiled in conflict. The peerless geniuses unleashed their martial arts, painting the air with colorful spiritual energy, and a sky-shaking aura enveloped the entire arena.

Fortunately, each stage was protected by a spiritual barrier; otherwise, those watching would certainly have been caught in the crossfire.

The spectators below were thrilled. However, within just a few seconds, several matches had already ended.

Qi Xuan, Mu Wanqing, Chen Hao, Chi Ying, and Qin Ming were all peerless geniuses at the ninth-stage of the Yuan Dan Realm. Possessing the strength to instantly crush others, they ended their battles quickly.

The cultivators they faced, though knowing they would lose, had hoped to fight with all their might and perhaps last for a few dozen strikes. To their surprise, after only one or two blows, they were beaten to the point of helplessness.

Was this the gap? The gap between ordinary geniuses and peerless geniuses.

Seeing those true geniuses end their fights so quickly, everyone off-stage gasped. The geniuses of the ninth-stage Yuan Dan Realm were indeed terrifying.

Wu Ba was an eighth-stage Yuan Dan Realm practitioner with immense combat power. He, too, could have ended his battle quickly and advanced easily, but he was hell-bent on courting disaster by insisting on fighting Zhang Heng.

When Wu Ba attacked again, Zhang Heng pushed his Small Aurora Phantom technique to the limit.

"Success," Zhang Heng whispered. He successfully appeared behind Wu Ba.

"Spirit Gathering Finger!" With a shout, Zhang Heng pressed his two fingers against Wu Ba's back.

The expected result did not occur. The spiritual energy exploded behind Wu Ba, but he only took two or three steps back and quickly regained his composure.

Zhang Heng was stunned. In the martial arena, his martial arts hadn't worked because his opponent, Tie Niu, was a human shield. But this Wu Ba? How could he withstand it? He was tall, but not that sturdy. Why was the Spirit Gathering Finger useless against him?

"Kid, your speed is enough, but your power is lacking," Wu Ba laughed.

Although Wu Ba acted dismissive, he was actually shocked to his core. *How can this kid be so fast?*

Previously, when he chased Zhang Heng, Zhang Heng was able to dodge. He had been surprised by Zhang Heng's speed but hadn't paid much mind to it.

But now it was different. Zhang Heng didn't just dodge; he was able to appear behind him before he could even react. That was truly terrifying.