As dawn broke, Dao Ye brought Li Zhonglou back to the trial area. He had initially wanted to speak with Lei Feng directly but was informed that the competition was about to begin and no unauthorized personnel were allowed inside, so he abandoned the thought.
"It's starting this soon? It seems Tie Lin is in a bit of a hurry."
Dao Ye muttered to himself, and Li Zhonglou felt a sense of relief hearing that.
The sooner the better, the faster it ends, the sooner I can leave!
Although the time spent away from Shangjing since leaving was not long, Li Zhonglou had been feeling anxious. After all, Zhou Tong was still imprisoned, and if he could return sooner, he could also rescue Zhou Tong earlier.
This was especially true given that he had two more places to visit according to his plan, which could very well take longer than his original estimated month.
When he returned to the edge of the arena, it was already crowded with contestants.
Yi Long and Lei Feng were secretly relieved to see Li Zhonglou return on time.
The second round of one-on-one duels soon continued. However, Li Zhonglou's mind was not on the arena.
The next cultivation technique that Ya Hao had planted in his meridians was not complicated. It merely involved further strengthening the already developed acupoints. If the previous stage involved strengthening all acupoints to a standard of 20, the next stage required strengthening them to 50.
Currently, almost all of Li Zhonglou's acupoints had just reached the standard of 20. Only the first two acupoints he had trained were slightly higher, reaching around 25.
Even so, his current strength had more than doubled compared to before he arrived at Tie Lin. This was an incredibly rapid rate of improvement. Li Zhonglou believed that no other cultivation technique in the world could achieve such results as Qian Mai.
Therefore, he was currently contemplating how to further strengthen all his acupoints to the standard of 50.
"According to the records, improvement through combat alone is already very slow. My senior brother also said that to continue progressing in such a situation, one needs the assistance of rare heavenly treasures..."
Thinking of this, Li Zhonglou suddenly felt an urge to return to Shangjing immediately.
When it came to heavenly treasures, where else could be richer than his own country? Although it still required substantial financial support, this was precisely not a problem for Li Zhonglou.
Putting aside other sources, he could gather a considerable amount of funds just from Ya Li Li and Zhang Yu Feng Zheng alone. Moreover, he was involved in antiques, and people in this line of work generally didn't lack money, and it came in quickly.
Li Zhonglou was confident that if he returned to Shangjing now, he could raise enough funds within a month to purchase various rare heavenly treasures.
However, this thought was quickly dispelled by the appearance of a figure.
Lin Qianqian's senior brother.
The moment he thought of him, Li Zhonglou's eyes instantly turned cold. This person was the first to completely suppress him using authority in front of him. Li Zhonglou absolutely would not allow such a thing to happen a second time!
"I cannot be hasty! Before returning to Shangjing again, I must possess sufficient status, at least to the point where these petty officials can no longer use their power to suppress me!"
China's situation was different from here, which was why many people did not understand why Li Zhonglou, possessing such strength, still participated in the Tie Lin competition and sought to gain his status through such channels.
Throughout China's history, countless individuals existed, but only those with high positions and authority ultimately survived. Unlike this world where strength reigned supreme, the schemes and stratagems in China reached a level of madness. A slight misstep, even with great martial prowess, could lead to death by the plots of a villain.
This was precisely why Li Zhonglou had cultivated a low-key nature.
"A tall tree in the forest will be destroyed by the wind" – this was the experience summarized by countless predecessors.
Just then, his name was suddenly called from the stage.
Li Zhonglou blinked in surprise, then reacted to Yi Long's reminder and walked towards the arena.
To his surprise, his opponent was Fang Zhang.
The latter's expression was clearly also quite astonished, but after reaching the stage, his face turned into a cold sneer.
"Who would have thought, even heaven is helping me? This time, I must avenge my severed arm!"
The moment the two stood on stage, the palpable tension was already sensed by everyone in the audience.
"Aren't these two also contestants? It's quite something that they've made it to this round."
Discussions immediately arose from below the stage.
"You're mistaken. This year's Tie Lin competition is different from previous ones. I've already seen several contestants whose strength is no less than that of a captain."
"Indeed, I've watched the newcomer from the Ghost team fight. His strength and combat skills are absolutely top-tier."
The crowd below quickly shed their underestimation and began to look forward to the battle between the two.
However, they were unaware that Li Zhonglou's mindset at this moment was completely different from before; he no longer wanted to waste time here.
Therefore, facing Fang Zhang's provocation, Li Zhonglou directly replied coldly, "I said I would kill you."
Fang Zhang's expression froze, then he burst into laughter.
"Kill me? Do you really think you're qualified? Last time, it was just your cunning scheme that succeeded."
"This time, I will make you wish you were dead!"
As he said this, Fang Zhang's expression turned icy. The staff, seeing the palpable tension between the two, immediately asked if they were ready. Upon receiving their nods, they quickly jumped off the stage.
The moment the announcer's call of "start" sounded, Fang Zhang had already moved.
His speed was more than double what it was before, and he immediately unleashed his ultimate move: Lightning Dragon Whip!
This was a move he had temporarily broken through and comprehended during his previous fight with Li Zhonglou. He spun sideways, his right leg flashing out like lightning. The resulting booming sound of the air being torn apart caused everyone in the audience to squint.
With such speed and power, many felt a faint sense of deathly threat.
After all, they were still in the audience. What if they were the ones facing this move on stage?
In an instant, Fang Zhang's standing in the eyes of the crowd significantly rose.
However, this increase in their estimation did not last long, because in the next second, something even more shocking happened.
Li Zhonglou did not dodge or evade. Instead, as Fang Zhang's leg swung towards him, he lunged forward, his foot grazing past Fang Zhang's leg, and then grasped Fang Zhang's neck.
"I told you I would kill you."
Li Zhonglou repeated, tightening his right hand.
A killing blow!