Chapter 73: Poaching on Stage

Not many websites participated in the first official competition test. Less than fifty websites from China made it through, and among them, only under thirty actually organized the competition events. Of these remaining websites, only three could truly pose a threat to Happy.
Only three had reached the Creation Realm!
Just then, the official website announced some news…
Due to its limited scope, the offline martial arts tournament would offer modest rewards. Aside from ranking among the websites, the top three would receive 50,000 taels of silver and a top-tier martial arts manual at the Creation Realm level! The first place winner would even get a top-tier manual corresponding to a martial art already mastered at the Grandmaster level (for example, “Shaolin Longquan” in exchange for “Arhat Fist”; to learn “Arhat Fist,” one must first master “Shaolin Longquan” at the Grandmaster level).
Upon hearing this, Happy, who had originally planned to hold back, realized his plans were falling through.
Website rankings weren’t that important, but the temptation of 50,000 taels of silver and a top-tier martial arts manual was immense. Despite having experience from his past life, that didn’t mean Happy was indifferent to wealth. On the contrary, his goals now were even higher, more ambitious, and long-term.
In the future, he would need money to study at private academies and improve his comprehension skills. Top-tier martial arts manuals were not easy to obtain—obtaining them was extremely rare, with each costing over 50,000 taels of silver, and the best even reaching millions, sometimes virtually unobtainable…
He naturally wouldn’t want to miss such a good opportunity.
…
That afternoon, Happy entered the martial arts tournament as the top-ranked candidate on the “Nanhua Jianghu List.” He wore the same outfit—blue clothes and a mask—except now the cloth piece was replaced by a proper mask, adding to his heroic and mysterious appearance.
In the first three rounds of elimination, Happy didn’t encounter any masters of the Creation Realm. With swift moves, he easily sent his opponents flying out of the arena, ending the fights quickly and advancing to the next round.
“Not bad strength.”
His first opponent in the second round was one of the Creation Realm experts. He came from an online company called “New World,” dressed in a white shirt with a silver belt. He looked impressive, under thirty years old, with a perpetually smiling face that gave him an approachable and experienced aura. From the moment Happy stepped onto the stage, he greeted him with a warm smile to build rapport:
“Young man, you must still be a student, right? I’m the network director of New World. I was wondering if you’d be interested in joining us?”
“…”
Happy was stunned.

The network director of New World thought Happy was interested, his smile unchanged as he placed his hands in front of him in a leadership-like manner and explained, “It’s like this—our network company plans to recruit some capable players to join the Heaven and Earth Society. We assess an individual’s strength based on their rank and contributions to the gang. I just watched your matches and think you’re quite good. Although your rank isn’t high, it’s no problem for you to earn a monthly salary of over 5,000, and it won’t interfere with your studies… If you’re interested, we can sign a contract online.”
“…”
Happy was speechless—so they came here to poach players too.
A monthly salary of 5,000 might sound good, but it still meant working for them. At most, it would be like being a high-level employee, providing money and items in the game for New World, with no real prospects for advancement.
“I’m not interested.”
The eyes visible beyond the mask returned to calmness as he replied indifferently.
“You can think about it.”
Just as the New World director spoke, the system announced the names of the two fighters and declared the battle to begin.
“No need.”
A brief and decisive reply came from Happy.
Lu Xiaokong, the New World director with his cheerful face, finally showed a hint of stiffness. He hadn’t expected a student-looking kid to reject his generous offer so promptly.
“Hmph.”
The director’s enthusiasm vanished instantly. He felt this masked kid was disrespectful and a faint anger arose in him.
However…
The opponent’s combat skills were indeed good. He had seen the high ratings on the “Nan Hua Jiang Hu List.” Happy’s every battle displayed the style and strength of a master—decisive and efficient in killing enemies. His performance against the Creation Realm’s Orochimaru had even shocked him. He wasn’t fully confident he could defeat this young man, which was why he tried to tempt him with benefits.
“Stop talking nonsense.”
Happy realized the opponent must have gathered information about him and understood he was trying to take advantage of his youth to win the battle indirectly. So he cut him off coldly, “If you want to hire me, show your strength. If you can defeat me, I’ll follow you.”
“Great!”
Happy’s provocation worked. Forced into action, Lu Xiaokong naturally couldn’t show weakness and agreed.
Boom!
His robes trembled as a powerful airflow emanated from Lu Xiaokong, carrying the unique aura and pressure of a Creation Realm warrior, quickly enveloping Happy.
But unfortunately…
In terms of creating an imposing aura, Orochimaru was clearly more successful.

A gust of wind hit, and Kai Xin merely tilted slightly to the side; his robes fluttered, yet he remained unmoved.
“Take this!”
With a thrust of his long sword, he moved like a dragon or snake, appearing to Kai Xin’s left.
Lu Xiaotian’s move was immediately recognized by Kai Xin as the superior Wudang martial art, the “Tiangang Sword Technique.” Unfortunately, his skill level was not high—he had only reached the fifth layer, slightly better than lower-tier master-level martial arts.
With a plan in mind, he lowered his hand, and the Hundred Battles Knife fell into his palm. Without hesitation, Kai Xin seized the opportunity, darting into the sea of sword shadows created by his opponent, using the Flower Hero Knife Technique to strike with the sound of wind cutting through dense forests.
The Flower Hero Knife Technique excelled in speed and defense, generally surpassing lower-tier martial arts by a great margin, barely able to counter the Tiangang Sword Technique. Sparks flew, and amidst the harsh clashing sounds and beautiful wind-cutting noises, it was almost impossible to see the two figures moving back and forth on the arena.
“What an excellent knife technique!”
As soon as the Flower Hero Knife Technique was used, Lu Xiaotian’s eyes lit up, and he couldn’t help but cheer loudly, his expression growing even more serious.
An expert can tell at a glance whether something is good!
Since practicing the superior sword technique, he had fought against many people and was well aware of the superiority of higher-tier martial arts over lower ones. Yet the Flower Hero Knife Technique gave him the impression of being evenly matched. Combined with Kai Xin’s remarkable sense and ability to control the battle, after just a few moves, he was horrified to realize he might be at a disadvantage.
“How is that possible?”
Lu Xiaotian couldn’t bear it.
Although he had expected he wasn’t a match, being pushed into a disadvantage so quickly still made him gasp. He channeled his internal energy desperately, and a thin stream of energy was forced out from the tip of his sword, making the sword shadows sharper and colder. Waves of sword light surged toward his opponent.
Sword energy!
Kai Xin’s eyes narrowed sharply.
When sword energy was used, its lethality doubled. Not only was its power astonishing, but it also caused significant damage to weapons. Under such circumstances, it was not advisable to fight head-on. He turned his knife, used his feet to push off, and with a series of calm movements, he retreated several meters into the air like a celestial being, escaping Lu Xiaotian’s attack range.
Lu Xiaotian was immediately in trouble…
Sword energy consumed a great deal of internal energy and slowed down movement. With Kai Xin’s retreat, he found himself in a difficult situation—neither able to advance nor retreat. With a sigh, he reluctantly admitted defeat.