40 New Ability (1/2)

”A bet? Haha!”

In a grand hall of the Martial Arts Hall, the Martial Arts Hall Master was teasing a beautiful bird that had fire-red feathers. Hearing the report of Manager Yang, he kept on laughing, so much that the silver earring on his left ear began to sway and let out a crisp ring.

Manager Yang didn't know whether the Martial Arts Hall Master was furious or pleased. His heart was perturbed, thinking that Jiang Yi penetrated himself into a bull's horn1. Jiang Yi wholeheartedly wanted to join the recruitment ceremony of the Mt. Spirit Beast College and didn't want to spar with the top ten prodigies even if he had to die. Manager Yang had no choice but to report this problem. He couldn't afford to take responsibility if they were to offend the five great clans.

”He would unconditionally be a sparring partner for ten years if he failed?”

The Martial Arts Hall Master mumbled a sentence and suddenly turned to look at Manager Yang. ”Bring the kid here.”

Manager Yang frantically left with an even more perturbed heart. The Hall Master always had an arrogant attitude. It was normally impossible for a regular clan head to meet with him, but he was actually summoning Jiang Yi? Would he actually kill Jiang Yi out of anger?

Jiang Yi was soon brought here. He, too, didn't think that his bet would actually reach the ears of the Martial Arts Hall Master. But if he couldn't enter the Mt. Spirit Beast College, he wouldn't have any other ways to leave Skyplume City. That would ultimately mean 'death' for him. He ground his teeth and walked into the grand hall.

”Lone Wolf offers his respects to the Hall Master!” Jiang Yi didn't kneel like before but bowed with cupped fists instead.

The Martial Arts Hall Master didn't even look at Jiang Yi and continued to tease the beautiful bird within the cage. His face didn't have any reactions. Jiang Yi and Manager Yang didn't dare to say a word and patiently waited while holding their breaths.

Two minutes later, the Martial Arts Hall Master turned around. He glared at Jiang Yi with cold eyes and asked softly, ”I heard that you want to violate the agreement?”

Jiang Yi got stunned but quickly tried to explain: ”It isn't like this, Hall Master…”

”There is no need to explain!”

With a hand gesture, the Martial Arts Hall Master interrupted the words of Jiang Yi and said with a severe tone, ”I don't want to listen to any explanation. Don't talk to me about gratitude or things like repaying in the future. Our Martial Arts Hall isn't a monastery: we are not going to rescue the poor or the needy. We are doing business here. To the Martial Arts Hall, there are no friends—just business partners or… enemies! If you were to violate the agreement, then you would become our enemy. Let me ask you one last time, are you sure you want to violate the agreement?”

As the Martial Arts Hall Master finished his statement, an imposing presence suddenly arose. Even though there were just slight traces of it, it caused Jiang Yi to breathe heavily and made his entire body shudder. The aura from a martial artist, who was at the peak stage of the Purple Mansion Realm, was too overwhelming. It was remarkable that Jiang Yi didn't kneel from the pressure.

Jiang Yi took a deep breath and clenched his teeth while saying each word, ”I do not want to violate the agreement, but I must participate in the Mt. Spirit Beast College's recruitment ceremony.”

The years of oppression in the Jiang Clan forged Jiang Yi's patient character and, at the same time, made him extremely obstinate. Once he was determined on a certain matter, he would not change. Take it for example when Jiang Ruhu demanded him to kneel, he would rather die than kneel!

”Swish!”

A huge palm whistled as it approached. Jiang Yi couldn't even clearly see how the Martial Arts Hall Master moved; he only saw a palm expanding limitlessly in his eyes.

”Huh…”

Manager Yang was shocked but didn't dare to say a word as he knew the Hall Master too well. The Hall Master was a temperamental individual that was firm in his decisions to kill. Manager Yang was afraid if he was to beg for mercy, he would be slaughtered in seconds, too.

Jiang Yi didn't move, not even his eyelids twitched; and he didn't utter any sound either. He seemed ready to receive his death.

”Hu-hu!”

The huge palm slammed down quickly and brought up a burst of a whirlwind, that made Jiang Yi's hair and robes dance violently in the wind. But the palm ultimately came to a stop in front of Jiang Yi's face. The forceful pressure pushed Jiang Yi back by three steps.

Jiang Yi's eyelids remained still, but his forehead was obviously sweating; and the cloth on his back was drenched in sweat, too.

The Martial Arts Hall Master stood in front of Jiang Yi and looked at him with emotionless eyes. He then uttered coldly, ”Not afraid of death? Good… I shall give you an opportunity. I can accept your bet, but the conditions shall be set by me!”

”Huh…”

Jiang Yi let out a long breath. It wasn't true that his heart didn't panic earlier, but he expected that the Martial Arts Hall Master wouldn't kill him. Because the Hall Master said it himself that the Martial Arts Hall was doing business; if he killed Jiang Yi, the Martial Arts Hall would suffer a loss.

Jiang Yi paused for a moment before speaking, ”Hall Master, please set your conditions!”

The Martial Arts Hall Master nodded and said, ”Since you are so confident that you can get one of the five enrollment spots with your mere strength in the fourth stage of the Cast Tripod Realm. Shall we have a bigger bet? If you manage to take one of the spots for enrollment, not only would the five-year agreement with the Martial Arts Hall be written off, I will present you with a hundred earth-tier inferior-grade elixirs, three manuals of earth-tier inferior-grade cultivation technique, and a treasured artifact! But if you were to lose, then you should be a slave of the Martial Arts Hall for life!”

”A slave of the Martial Arts Hall for life?”

Jiang Yi was shocked at the ruthlessness of the Martial Arts Hall Master. If he were to truly lose, he would be a slave and had to slog for the Martial Arts Hall for the rest of his life!

Manager Yang looked at Jiang Yi and sighed slightly. No matter how one looked at it, Jiang Yi was just a 15-year-old kid; and it was too cruel for the Martial Arts Hall Master to set this trap for Jiang Yi to fall into.

How could Jiang Yi get one of the spots with his mere strength? Ji Tingyu, Jiang Henshui, and Leng Qianqian were set to grab three of the spots. People like Ma Heiqi, Liu He, and Liu Zhan were all at the eighth stage of the Cast Tripod Realm. No matter how insane Jiang Yi's reaction speed was, he would be defeated in the face of absolute strength.

”Alright!”