They all exuded an imposing aura. Although their auras were not very stable, their powerful energy was like the bright moon in the dark night, impossible to conceal.

Mountains and seas!

"Nearly twenty people..."

Shen's expression turned solemn. "Are these all the martial artists who participated in the Wuding Bridge training this time?"

“That’s right, and those who can reach this point are basically the best of the best.” Liu Changqing nodded.

"Then why do they seem to be getting along so well?"

Shen Qian asked curiously.

According to Liu Changqing, everyone is a competitor, and the atmosphere should be at least indifferent and wary, if not tense.

However, the nearly twenty people who appeared were standing shoulder to shoulder, seemingly chatting and laughing. They didn't seem like martial artists from the mountains and seas who came to compete for opportunities, but rather like a tour group on vacation.

"Naturally, it's because they have a common enemy..."

This situation seemed to be somewhat unexpected for Liu Changqing, who said with a rather annoyed expression.

And who this common enemy is, of course, self-evident.

Shen Qian's expression was strange. "Sixth Senior Brother, what exactly did you do to make them abandon their pride and unite against a common enemy?"

"Actually, it's not a big deal..." Liu Changqing's expression was somewhat unnatural.

"Tell me more," Shen Qian said, not giving him a chance to be vague.

"It's nothing really, it's just that... at one checkpoint, I took advantage of the fighting to steal some stuff, and then... you know."

"What?"

Before sinking, I broke the pot and asked them to the bottom of things.

"Well, all he did was piss on them and yell 'You're all trash'..."

Liu Changqing mumbled something.

Holy crap!

So Shen Qian also started to feel a bit of a headache, "Can you handle this?"

"Of course...no way!"

Meeting Shen Qian's questioning gaze, Liu Changqing, whose expression was not very natural, burst into curses.

"You think I'm Superman? One or two is easy, three or five is no problem either, but more than ten, then I'm just going to get beaten up. These guys are all geniuses, you think it's like chopping vegetables? It's not that easy!"

"Hmm..."

"Forget it, never mind. Just listen to me, you should hide first!"

Without waiting for Chen Qian to ponder, Liu Changqing made a decision with a wave of his hand.

"And what about you?" Shen Qian was taken aback.

"I'll go into the Divine Mechanism Hall first. Although the champion is gone, the reward for the top scholar won't be bad either," Liu Changqing said irritably, clearly still harboring some resentment.

"Uh... what if they block the gate?" Shen Qian asked. "By the way, are there any other exits from Wuding Bridge?"

“That’s it. Even if we get the reward, we can only go back the way we came. Although we don’t have to go through the checkpoint again, we can’t avoid the trouble these people will face.” Liu Changqing rubbed his temples.

"So they can steal your rewards too?"

Shen Qian was stunned, not expecting the Wuding Bridge to have such a mechanism.

"Well, now you know how difficult it is to be the champion. In the past, eight or nine out of ten champions were already satisfied with just the reward for refining their Yuan Power. They usually couldn't keep the other rewards. Only a few exceptional individuals could go back and fight their way through again."

Liu Changqing nodded.

"What about the third, fourth, and fifth senior brothers..." Shen Qian recalled Liu Changqing mentioning earlier that his senior brothers were all leaders, and asked curiously.

"Naturally... we'll fight our way through."

Liu Changqing's answer did not disappoint Shen Qian.

All he could do was exclaim, "Awesome!"

"If my Yuan Power were tempered again, I could still break through!" Perhaps provoked by Shen Qian's inexplicable expression, Liu Changqing snorted coldly.

"Ahem, Sixth Senior Brother, is life-or-death combat allowed here?" Shen Qian could only change the subject.

"It's not a matter of life or death. Once you enter a near-death state, you'll be teleported out. However, all the rewards you've already won will be lost, so don't worry about me. Get lost!" Liu Changqing waved his hand impatiently.

"How about I stay and help you?" Shen Qian suggested.

"You can't help me with anything!" Liu Changqing sneered. "Get out of here, don't get in my way!"

Before Chen Qian could say anything more, Liu Changqing took a step forward. The gate of the Divine Mechanism Hall opened, and Liu Changqing disappeared into the light, clearly having entered the hall.

Shen Qian glanced at the martial artists from the mountains and seas who were flying in from the horizon, then looked at the Divine Mechanism Hall, thought for a moment, and then his figure slowly dissipated from the spot.

...

Before the Divine Machine Hall.

Accompanied by a continuous series of whooshing sounds, one figure after another landed outside the tightly closed stone gate.

There were a total of nineteen people, mostly young people with a few middle-aged faces mixed in. There were both men and women, and their attire varied.

The only thing they had in common was their overwhelmingly powerful aura.

"The stone gate opened just now, but we were too late. Liu Changqing should have already gone in."

A blond young man with a well-proportioned figure and a sparse, unassuming appearance frowned.

"We were already so far behind, it's strange that he only entered the stone gate so late," another long-haired, aloof woman said calmly.

"Given Liu Changqing's reckless nature, he probably did it on purpose, right?" the third burly man said angrily. "Most likely, it was to deliberately humiliate us!"

"I don't care what he's up to, I don't care if he won the championship, but he dared to do this to me... How can I accept it if I don't cut off his hand!" Another short-haired woman said with a face full of resentment.

When the painful memory was brought up, everyone fell silent.

Which of them wasn't a chosen one of heaven? How could they have experienced such humiliation?

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!