The martial arts arena was packed with people, buzzing with excitement.
The last time the arena was this lively was during Yan Shouyi's livestream where he brutally beat up the Red Flower Society.
Speaking of which, that was also the first livestream on the Civil Teaching forum, and it was then that Yan Shouyi's fame skyrocketed.
Could this second livestream, his second time fighting in the arena, achieve the same results as the first?
The match hadn't even begun, but the comments in the livestream chat were scrolling so fast they were almost unreadable.
【stranger: Sob sob, President Yan is livestreaming arena matches again, my youth is back!】
【HandsomeBoy: President Yan, go, go go!】
【LittleOrangeWantsToEat: This time it's just a match against Hou Jingchen. I wonder how many moves President Yan can exchange with Hou Jingchen. Hou Jingchen's combat power is not weak...】
【丿KingWarrior: Hmph, you should be asking how many rounds Hou Jingchen can last under President Yan! President Yan is invincible, believe it or not, I do!】
【Qing Zhi: Yes, yes, I also support President Yan... Huh? Why don't I see Goddess Lin Zitong! I saw her in person at the Luotian Grand Ceremony last time, she was absolutely stunning!】
【Qin Emperor Han Wu: Isn't Sect Leader Lin about to give birth? I wonder if it's a boy or a girl, I'm already preparing to propose for a marriage!】
【Time Thief: Pfft, you toad lusting after swan meat, even eyeing President Yan's child!】
【Zhao Zhao's Cat Owner: By the way, why hasn't the administrator Lang Li Bai Long appeared? Does anyone know where he's gone?】
Filtering out the spam comments, most people still blindly supported Yan Shouyi regarding the match between him and Hou Jingchen.
A small minority were more cautious, reserving their opinions. After all, Hou Jingchen was an elder of great power, and his cultivation level was more than a little higher than the Red Flower Society's back then.
It had only been a few months since the fight with the Red Flower Society, and even with Yan Shouyi's genius, his strength couldn't have increased that rapidly, could it?
Yan Shouyi was unaware of the situation in the livestream. He faced Hou Jingchen, who stood opposite him, clasped his fists, and said loudly:
"Senior Hou, let's just spar until we reach a reasonable point. I hope you'll go easy on me."
Hou Jingchen snorted coldly and said, "President Yan, I recognize your abilities and character, but I feel you are somewhat arrogant."
"Ah?"
Yan Shouyi was full of confusion. Wasn't he always polite and humble?
Where did the arrogance come from?
Those who knew Yan Shouyi were also puzzled. Although Yan Shouyi had minor flaws, arrogance was definitely not one of them.
Li Zhongxi, standing below the stage, smiled helplessly.
Yan Shouyi didn't understand the reason but planned to settle things with Hou Jingchen on the stage and discuss it afterward.
So he got into a stance and said, "Senior, you go first."
"Hmph!"
Hou Jingchen became even more annoyed. Letting a junior go first was looking down on the senior, wasn't it?
With that, Hou Jingchen opened his long robe.
Inside the thick, loose robe were many small, thick pockets, each adorned with strange patterns.
Yan Shouyi recognized at a glance that these small pockets were products of Fengyi Xuan, meaning they contained many treasures.
Hou Jingchen patted one of the pockets, and three treasures directly sprang out from the small pocket.
They were the Three Essentials of the Night Watchman: a Zhanmadao saber, a horse lantern, and a copper gong.
A gong's tremor shook the earth, and a cry split the sky!
As Hou Jingchen donned these three treasures, his entire demeanor changed, as if he were Zhong Kui reborn, striking fear into gods and demons.
"As expected of Old Hou!"
Zhou Yan, standing below the stage,'s eyes lit up. He felt the oppressive aura emanating from Hou Jingchen.
Hou Jingchen was from a prestigious family, and his ancestors had produced three generals. Therefore, Hou Jingchen had been rigorously trained by his family since childhood, possessing a righteous spirit perfectly suited for a Night Watchman.
Xu Gan, a Night Watchman who had accompanied Li Zhongxi to Rongcheng, also looked at Hou Jingchen in astonishment.
In his opinion, Hou Jingchen was likely several levels stronger than his own master, Xu Zhiping. If he were to face Hou Jingchen, he would be defeated within ten rounds.
"I wonder how long Brother Yan can last," Xu Gan thought to himself.
Perhaps because he knew Yan Shouyi, Xu Gan did not blindly support Yan Shouyi like the netizens in the livestream.
Based on his rational analysis, Yan Shouyi should be able to hold on for thirty rounds against Hou Jingchen to convince everyone.
After all, losing to an experienced veteran was not a shameful thing.
Hou Jingchen gripped the Zhanmadao saber with both hands and suddenly disappeared from his spot, reappearing behind Yan Shouyi!
This speed was so fast that ninety percent of the people present couldn't even see his movements. The remaining ten percent, most of them, believed they couldn't handle Hou Jingchen's speed.
Meanwhile, Yan Shouyi remained in his original position, seemingly not having reacted yet.
Hou Jingchen let out a cold snort, thinking: Is it going to end this quickly?
However, in the next second, Yan Shouyi's figure suddenly vanished from his spot.
Hou Jingchen's eyes widened in disbelief.
His speed was already very fast, but he hadn't even caught a glimpse of Yan Shouyi's shadow!
This kid... can he teleport?!
Hou Jingchen immediately retracted his saber, landed, and retreated into a defensive posture, searching for Yan Shouyi's whereabouts.
He focused on his surroundings but completely ignored what was beneath his feet.
The moment his foot stepped into the mud, he realized something was wrong.
The ground of the martial arts arena slowly revealed a hundred and eight layers of a compass. Hou Jingchen happened to step onto the "Gen Earth" position, and the cement ground beneath him instantly turned into a mud pit!
Yan Shouyi suddenly appeared in front of Hou Jingchen and struck towards him with his bare fists!
Hou Jingchen's face changed drastically. He hurriedly raised his copper gong to block. With a clang, Hou Jingchen was sent flying back more than ten meters!
On the incredibly hard copper gong, a fist-sized imprint had appeared!
"Such terrifying speed and strength!" Hou Jingchen was greatly alarmed, instantly discarding all his previous contempt.
He now realized that what Yan Shouyi's parents had said to him earlier might not have been empty threats, but sincere advice...
However, Hou Jingchen felt happy about it instead: "Good kid, the stronger you are, the more reassured I will be to hand over the Changlin Army to you!"
He adjusted his posture in mid-air and landed steadily. Yan Shouyi did not pursue him but watched Hou Jingchen from a distance.
"Senior Hou!" Yan Shouyi called out, "Can we use our magical treasures in our match?"
Hou Jingchen frowned: "Of course, but why do you ask?"
"It's nothing special. It's just that my weapon was upgraded yesterday, and I was looking for someone to test its power. Now, I'd like to borrow your hand to test it out!"
Hou Jingchen laughed heartily: "Go ahead and do your best!"
Hou Jingchen chuckled inwardly: What weapon could be so formidable that it requires seeking the opponent's permission before use?
Having received Hou Jingchen's affirmative reply, Yan Shouyi had no more reservations.
He turned and shouted towards the Civil Teaching stronghold, "Heaven did not give birth to Dragon Fly City, and the Civil Teaching would have been as eternal night – Bring forth the saber!!"