Chapter 202: The First Match

The majority of the outer sect disciples in the stands were young people with childlike hearts. On such occasions, like ordinary people, they were extremely enthusiastic about cheering, shouting, and making noise.
When Su Che stepped to the center of the arena and bowed to everyone, the cheers reached their peak before gradually subsiding.
The ceremony master then announced the rules of the arena, which were quite simple: magic weapons, spells, spirit talismans, pills, formations, tactics, and more could all be used, as all means were manifestations of a cultivator’s strength—there was no debate over whether they were appropriate or fair.
The only rule was that one could not threaten the opponent in any way, such as saying, “My father is so-and-so; if you dare to beat me, this will happen…” Communication between the fighters was also prohibited to avoid such disgraceful behavior.
“In the Hundred Battles Arena, the hundred chosen disciples volunteer to step onto the arena. If no volunteers appear within ten breaths, the challenger Su Che may choose an opponent himself…”
After explaining all the rules, the ceremony master finally declared, “The defense begins!”
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Three drumbeats sounded, and from that moment on, loud noises were no longer allowed to disturb the fighters on the arena.
Then, the drums sounded again, more slowly. If no one volunteered after ten beats, Su Che could choose an opponent at will.
Yet after just the third beat, a chosen disciple leaped up and landed directly on the arena.
“Ao Yuan from Xuance Peak—please teach me, Junior Brother Su!”
Ao Yuan was the third-ranked chosen disciple of Xuance Peak, at the later stage of the Foundation Establishment phase, with an age equivalent to 42 years old. He had dual-type Earth Spirit roots and was skilled in controlling spirit beasts.
“Not only is he at the later stage of Foundation Establishment, but he’s also good at controlling beasts. It seems he has a heavy responsibility too.”
Su Che naturally understood that Ao Yuan stepping forward first must be part of a strategy agreed upon by the chosen disciples.
Ao Yuan’s strength wasn’t the highest nor the lowest, but his skill in controlling beasts meant he had an ally. By fighting against many, he aimed to reveal his true strength. Even if he couldn’t win, it would still allow the nine Golden Pill chosen disciples to gauge his capabilities…
On the arena, the two fighters bowed to each other, standing about thirty zhang apart.
“Begin!”
The ceremony master gave the order.
Whoosh!
Su Che, who always believed in striking first, sent his top-tier flying sword flying immediately.
He thought Ao Yuan would likely use an attack magic weapon in return, or activate a defensive magic weapon…

Yet he saw his figure flicker, leaving behind several afterimages. Like the most agile beasts, he managed to dodge Su Che’s lightning-fast flying sword.
Snap! He struck his hands together, and claw gauntlets appeared in both hands—sharp, three-inch-long claws with a terrifying appearance.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
On the arena, with endless afterimages, Ao Yuan moved at incredible speed, making it impossible for Su Che’s sword attacks to pinpoint his true location.
“This man is skilled in close combat—this is completely different from what the rumors said. My master was right; every true disciple has their secrets.”
Such thoughts flashed through Su Che’s mind, yet his actions continued without pause. While controlling the flying sword, he also grasped a black war axe in his other hand.
“When it comes to close combat, who in the world can compare to the Witch Clan?”
Su Che stood motionless, waiting for Ao Yuan to get close. Although Ao Yuan’s movement speed was extremely fast, Su Che’s physical strength, as that of a demon, allowed him to keep up with his pace.
Then, use constancy to counter change!
Below the arena, the eight Golden Core true disciples gathered together and began whispering to each other using telepathy. Such small actions were allowed below, but once on the arena, no telepathic communication was permitted.
Even with telepathy, the low-level cultivation of the disciples could still be clearly sensed by the Yuan Ying ancestors.
Weren’t there nine Golden Core true disciples? Where was the other one?
Only Jin Chong from the Sky Sword Peak refused to collude with anyone, standing alone with an air of pride.
At that moment, seeing Su Che remain unfazed as Ao Yuan closed in rapidly, even the Golden Core disciples grew curious: Could he also be an expert in close combat?
Before their doubts could fully form, the answer came!
“Hit!”
Su Che swung his axe, aiming at a spot that seemed completely empty…
Bang!
With a loud explosion, Ao Yuan’s blindingly fast figure was sent flying three zhang back as if struck by lightning.
Su Che’s prediction was extremely accurate. There was nothing in front of him when he swung, but at the exact moment of impact, Ao Yuan happened to extend his right claw.
Having been strengthened twice by the Witch Clan’s bloodline, Su Che had already become the best close-combat fighter among humans. He didn’t need to learn these skills—they were innate in his bloodline.
Clang… Clang…
With several sharp sounds, Ao Yuan was shocked to find that three of the tips of his claw gauntlets, which were equivalent to top-tier spiritual weapons, had been severed, causing severe damage.
Suffering such losses with just a single touch, Ao Yuan’s shock was evident.

He had long known that Su Che must be extremely powerful to be qualified to establish the Hundred Battles Arena. That’s why Ao Yuan immediately used a hidden skill he had never shown before—close-quarters combat. He hadn’t expected things to turn out so tragic.
“Senior Ao, you’d better change tactics.”
Su Che put away his battle axe, his tone sincere and free of sarcasm. “I’m good at close-quarters combat too.”
How could Ao Yuan not realize that Su Che was giving him a chance to start over and avoid a humiliating defeat?
“Thank you.”
With a nod in return, Ao Yuan stepped back twenty zhang, retracted his claws, and summoned a giant winged tiger with a swift motion.
The black tiger, over ten zhang long with a pair of giant wings on its back, was a demonic beast born with the ability to fly, at the mid-level of the second tier, equivalent to the mid-stage of human Foundation Establishment.
Su Che nodded and, with a thought, summoned a dragon over seven zhang long as well.
“A battle between dragon and tiger might be a bit more interesting,” he thought.
“A Silver-Bearded Dragon?”
On the stands, many people exclaimed in shock. They never expected Su Che to also know how to control beasts.
Ao Yuan shook his head with a bitter smile, knowing he was already doomed.
The two skills he was best at, the opponent was even more proficient in. His earlier close-quarters attack had almost cost him his right hand, and now, while he summoned a tiger, the other party had brought forth a noble-blooded dragon.
How… how could he fight?
Su Che knew how to be polite, but the little dragon cared nothing for such things. As soon as it appeared, it unleashed lightning at the winged tiger.
Crack!
At the speed of lightning, there was no way to dodge. The winged tiger couldn’t avoid it and could only desperately muster its demonic energy to withstand the strike.
Thud!
That lightning strike almost knocked the winged tiger to the ground. Thankfully, their strengths were comparable, and it managed to hold on.
Swish!
The winged tiger, experienced in countless battles, shook its head before spraying a blue wind blade toward Su Che.
Su Che was stunned. “It’s not me who attacked you. Why are you targeting me?”
This was Ao Yuan’s tactic—only by teaming up with his spiritual beast to focus on Su Che could they have a slim chance of winning. A one-on-one fight meant certain defeat!
But what filled him with despair happened instantly.
A stunningly beautiful face appeared before him, yet her lower body was astonishing.
A snake woman had appeared!
“A beauty snake?”
“A primordial exotic beauty snake!”
Some experienced Golden Core elders couldn’t help but shout in shock.

At this moment, even the Supreme Patriarch couldn’t help but smile faintly: This kid is quite skilled; it won’t be easy to force him to reveal all his cards…
Yes, the Supreme Patriarch had seen through Su Che’s plans.
Su Che’s intention was that things would remain as they were until the true disciples of the Golden Core stage stepped onto the stage. He and the Snake Woman both had the strength of the later stage of Foundation Establishment, while the Little Dragon was at the middle stage. Such a lineup was sufficient to deal with true disciples below the Golden Core stage—there was no need to reveal any other abilities.
Below, many true disciples looked grim. The thought of having to face such a lineup on stage made them feel uneasy.
Although they knew that the five Yuan Ying ancestors were present and would ensure no one died, being humiliated on stage was still terrifying.
In the Hundred Battles Arena, there was no such thing as voluntarily admitting defeat. Even if one didn’t want to fight, they had to continue until an inevitable loss occurred, at which point the five ancestors would decide the winner.
It might sound unreasonable, but in reality, it was a form of tempering. Otherwise, these favored true disciples would eventually become incapable of handling setbacks or facing failure.
Within the sect, true disciples also had to regularly complete various assigned tempering tasks.
On the arena, Ao Yuan kept retreating, already pushed to the edge by Su Che and his two companions. If he went any further, he would fall off the arena. Even if he could fly, failing to stay on the arena would still count as a loss.
Su Che did this on purpose to ensure a dignified defeat. Losing by falling off the arena was considered the most honorable way to lose.
After all, they were all brothers in the sect. The weaker the opponent, the more one should consider their dignity.
The five Yuan Ying ancestors nodded in approval: This shows great maturity—this child has a solid character.
Finally, the ceremonial elder announced loudly, “He’s fallen off the arena! This match is over—Su Che wins!”
Applause rang out. Ao Yuan hovered in the air and bowed to Su Che, saying, “Thank you, senior brother, for your guidance.”
Having lost willingly and understanding the good intentions behind it, Ao Yuan voluntarily changed his address, calling Su Che “senior brother,” showing his recognition and respect.
Roar!
The Winged Black Tiger let out a roar, seemingly expressing some emotion toward the Little Dragon.
The Little Dragon wasn’t angry. It swayed gently and floated over to Su Che’s side. It seemed the Winged Black Tiger’s roar wasn’t meant as a provocation.
In the first match, Su Che won easily. The eight true disciples of the Golden Core stage below knew full well that this was far from his true strength.

“Fellow disciples, if we want to bring out his true strength, one of us must step forward first; only then is it possible,” said Wu Ze from Tianwu Peak, somewhat impatiently.
“Don’t rush. Let’s wait and see,” said Duan Tianya from Xuanji Peak with a calm smile. “A hundred matches? It’s still too early.”