"You? You don't deserve to know my title!" Lin Xiu smiled at Sheng Fei disdainfully.

The outpouring of genetic energy around Sheng Fei suddenly turned cold. The darkness-attuned genetic energy, gleaming with malicious light, made Sheng Fei look like an evil scorpion.

"Trying to act mysteriously, are you? I'll vanquish you in one blow!" Dark genetic energy exploded from Sheng Fei's body, dyeing the arena dark.

"Isn't this instructor being a little too arrogant? I can't believe he dares to anger Dojo Leader Sheng Fei!"

"Just watch—he's about to die!"

If nothing else, the audience was finally getting a good show at last. Despite Lin Xiu's overwhelming victory in the last two fights, Sheng Fei was still the crowd favorite: he was well-known in the hunter community, after all.

"[Descent of Hades]!" The dark energy filling the arena seemed to grow thicker. Black clouds of fog and smoke billowed out from the stage, forming an ancient throne on which a black figure seemed to be seated. A sense of chilling death swept over the crowd.

"It's Sheng Fei's signature [Descent of Hades]!" someone shouted from within the crowd.

The figure on the dread throne slowly stood up, sending chilly winds howling every which way. Dark clouds gathered above the arena. A pair of demonic claws ripped past the clouds and pressed toward Lin Xiu.

Shrouded in the mist, Lin Xiu remained immobile, as though he were scared stiff.

"See? This is as far as this dojo instructor can go. How can he hope to challenge Sheng Fei?"

Many in the audience thought that Lin Xiu was surely dead.

"[Descent of Hades]? It might look impressive, but the technique itself isn't very strong," Lin Xiu mumbled to himself. No one noticed what he said except for Zhang Lie, who was the closest to him. Only he discovered that Lin Xiu had begun circulating genetic energy.

The moment the claws swiped at him, a pale blue light caused the dark clouds above him to dissipate, forming a bulwark against the darkness. By the time the fog cleared enough that the arena was visible to the audience, Lin Xiu was the only one left standing; Sheng Fei had collapsed to the floor like a dead dog.

By his chest, a finger-sized hole was dripping blood. The guests were openmouthed with shock, as though they were all stunned by the outcome of the match.

Sheng Fei had lost after just a single blow?! He hadn't even lasted as long as Mo Tianshan did!

"D-Did Dojo Leader Sheng Fei really lose that easily?" someone whispered.

"The three challenges are over," Lin Xiu said listlessly, yawning again. He stepped down from the stage and stopped by Zhang Lie's side.

In the stands, Li Mo, Wang Han, and Qin Zongming clenched their fists tightly, their faces pale.

"Are the dojo leaders of Ning all such worthless trash?" Wang Han murmured. They weren't even able to get rid of a paltry dojo instructor!

"No, they aren't weak—the opponent's just far too strong for them. If I'm not mistaken, that dojo instructor's likely one of the four sages of China's Fenglin Volcano!" Qin Zongming spat out. He had no intention of continuing with the plan; it was obvious that, with Lin Xiu present, none of them would be able to harm Zhang Lie.

"The four great sages? Aren't they part of the military and known for their secretive nature? Why would they be participating in the opening ceremony for Zhang Lie's dojo? Could the Chinese military have sent him over? No, surely not—there's no way the military would dispatch a sage just to protect someone like Zhang Lie!" Wang Han shouted in disbelief.

"Forget it, forget it! We don't have a choice. We can't let the challenges end just like this; if we can't deal with that dojo instructor, then we simply have to get Zhang Lie in the arena himself. No matter what, we can't let this golden opportunity slip away!" Li Mo whispered.

After Lin Xiu jumped off the arena, Zhang Lie stepped up once more, ready to announce the banquet that would mark the end of the ceremony. However, the moment he stepped up, murmurs of unrest spread through the audience.

"Please wait! The traditional challenge is meant to test the dojo's overall strength. Surely it's against the spirit of the challenge to have a single dojo instructor take on all three challenges? It's still early, so I suggest that we have a few more matches!" Wang Han stood up with a curious suggestion.

"Indeed, I'd like to see Dojo Leader Zhang fight himself!" Li Mo agreed.

"Yes, yes! It would be far more interesting if Dojo Leader Zhang could show us his skills as well," several other dojo leaders quickly agreed with the motion.

Zhang Lie smiled. As expected, the Qin, Wang, and Li clans wouldn't give up.

"That's right, Dojo Leader Zhang! Shouldn't you give the leaders from the other dojos some chance to shine? No one from the capital has challenged you yet!" Zhou Ruo exclaimed.

Wang Han's suggestion was supported by so many factions that Zhang Lie couldn't easily refuse. If he did so, then the dojo might lose much of its reputation, and the opening ceremony wouldn't conclude satisfactorily.

"In that case, we'll have three more challenges: but, once again, only those who defeat my instructor will have the right to challenge me," Zhang Lie replied, accepting the proposal.

Qin Zongming relaxed, but the next hurdle they would have to overcome would be Lin Xiu. If they wanted to attack Zhang Lie, they would have to defeat him first.

"What should we do? How will we get rid of Lin Xiu?" Wang Han frowned. The fact that Zhang Lie had accepted so readily gave him quite a bit of stress: Lin Xiu was simply so strong that his confidence couldn't help but waver.

"There's no issue. Our target has never been Lin Xiu, but rather Zhang Lie. We'll give up two challenges, but I'll make sure that Zhang Lie's on stage himself for the last one!" Li Mo was still relatively calm; he knew just how strong the subsequent challengers would be.

"I apologize for the trouble, Master Lin!" Zhang Lie inclined his head toward Lin Xiu as he walked down the stage once more, whereas Lin Xiu again took center stage.

"Captain, there wasn't any need to agree to their unreasonable demands! We've followed the standard ceremonial proceedings throughout!" Sun Mengmeng cried out.

"Don't worry. It's not as if they would have stopped trying to attack me if I declined their suggestion, after all."

With Lin Xiu around, he didn't have much to worry about. He might not have his past life's strength, but that didn't mean his experience had vanished. Given Lin Xiu's performance, Zhang Lie could tell that he was at least as strong as a sage.

Lin Xiu's gaze was as indolent as ever.

"Who will challenge me?" he asked. His voice wasn't very loud, but it carried across the stage.

The audience stirred once more, but no one stepped forward this time. After all, Dugu Xun, Mo Tianshan, and Sheng Fei had all lost to Lin Xiu in a single blow. Only someone whose strength was well above that of all three hunters even stood a chance.

"Is there no one?" Lin Xiu asked again.

Qin Zongming gave Ren Tianlong a look; the latter nodded and slowly stood up. The audience quickly made way for the imposing hunter.

"It's Ren Tianlong himself! Apparently, he once faced three third-realm superior-grade lifeforms alone, and he's purportedly stronger than even Sheng Fei!"

"So? Sheng Fei was defeated in a single blow! I doubt this Ren Tianlong will do much better. Not losing in one blow's enough of an accomplishment!"

By now, the audience was siding with Lin Xiu. Ren Tianlong was a legendary figure, but Lin Xiu had dominated the first three matches with barely any effort.

"Sir, I'm Ren Tianlong. Let's have a good match!"

Ren Tianlong walked out from the crowd and leapt onto the stage. Compared to the three dojo leaders from Ning, he was far more reserved. His expression was serious as he got into a battle stance.

The two of them glanced at each other, neither wanting to make the first move.

"Ren Tianlong, eh? You're not the real deal, are you?" Lin Xiu asked, his voice pitched low enough that none but the two of them could hear their conversation.

"As for you, sir, I'm sure you're far more than a dojo instructor around here!" 'Ren Tianlong' countered.

It was clear to the audience that Lin Xiu was an exceptional hunter, or 'Ren Tianlong' wouldn't be on stage now.

"It must feel uncomfortable to use a shapeshifting potion, musn't it?" Lin Xiu continued.

"I can't fool your eyes, sir."

Knowing that his true identity might well be exposed if he allowed this conversation to continue, 'Ren Tianlong' charged forward with a burst of genetic energy, shielded by a curious glow.

"You're from the Qin clan, aren't you? It looks like you've really done significant preparation in order to deal with Zhang Lie. But did you really think that it was a good idea to send a water-attuned hunter against me? If nothing else, I have to commend you on your courage."

A faint blue glow shone from Lin Xiu's body.

"Take this!" 'Ren Tianlong' swung at Lin Xiu with a shining fist. Waves shot out from his fist, morphing into a ferocious blue qilin that rushed toward Lin Xiu.

"The legendary-grade [Qilin Fist], huh? It looks like my guess wasn't wrong— but your attack's lacking!" 

Lin Xiu needed only one finger to counter the attack. Ripples of genetic energy spread out from his finger, forming a screen of water against which the blue qilin crashed. The qilin roared and smashed its body against the translucent barrier, but failed to break or even dent it.

Instead, as Lin Xiu flicked his finger, the screen of water exploded along with the qilin, transforming into a thin arrow of water that Lin Xiu sent toward 'Ren Tianlong'. 'Ren Tianlong' stumbled back in shock; the arrow pierced his palm and shot out his right shoulder with a spray of blood before dissipating into red-tinted mist.